• Korean Journal of Legislative Studies
• /
• v.26 no.2
• /
• pp.5-33
• /
• 2020

Ahead of the 21st Korean National Assembly Election, the congressional election law was revised, and the semi-mixed member proportional system was introduced. The purpose of the revision of the election law was to increase the proportionality and representativeness of the election system through the institutional reform in the direction of promoting a multi-party system. This study shows that the effect of the introduction of the semi-mixed proportional system was compared with the election results when the previous proportional representative system was maintained. There was no significant difference from the results. This study reveals that contrary to the intention of institutional design to revitalize the multi-party system, the two large political parties took the most seats after democratization in 1987, resulting in an unintended consequences. In addition, with regard to the recent argument for party realignment, the Busan, Ulsan, and Gyeongnam regions have been dealigned in the Yeongnam regional cleavage, and are undergoing a process of party realignment. It has not yet entered the stage of realignment, but remains in the stage of fluid dealignment.

• Korean Journal of Legislative Studies
• /
• v.15 no.1
• /
• pp.237-260
• /
• 2009

This article deals with the problem, of wether the change of party discourse influences the change of the political finance system and the change of political finance system again effects the political discourse. The political finance and state funding system for parties in Germany is a product of political debate and conflict from the 1960's to th 1990's. The introduction of the state funding system faced critical public opinion at the beginning, and the German parties have initiated a discourse building process as the initiator role and major actor. The state funding system for parties has changed three times and shows, how the constitutional interpretation became dominant in parliament and the constitutional court, which considers a party as a fundamental and essential institution in a democratic system.

• Korean Journal of Legislative Studies
• /
• v.17 no.3
• /
• pp.5-28
• /
• 2011

이 논문은 선진민주주의 국가의 선거경쟁에서 제시되는 정당 매니페스토 자료와 사회정책 자료를 사용하여 국가별 정당 간 입장의 차이, 정부당파성과 복지국가의 관계, 그리고 복지국가 이슈에 관한 정당양극화의 문제에 대해 경험적 분석을 제시한다. 이 논문의 분석이 제시하는 바는 다음과 같다. 첫째, 선진민주주의 국가의 주요 좌우파 정당 간 사회정책 입장의 차이는 국가별로 편차를 보인다. 복지국가 이슈와 관련한 정당양극화의 정도는 기존 복지국가 체계의 특성, 선거제도, 또는 선거경쟁에서 나타나는 복지국가 이슈의 유형에 따라 다른 것으로 보인다. 둘째, 집권정당의 당파성이 복지국가에 미치는 영향을 확인할 수 있다. 셋째, 정당이 복지국가에 미치는 영향이 제한적이거나 혹은 제도적 맥락에 조건지어진다는 점을 고려할 필요가 있다. 어쩌면 정당 및 정부당파성이 복지국가에 미치는 영향은 협의제 민주주의(consensus democracies) 유형의 국가들보다는 다수제 민주주의(majoritarian democracies) 유형의 국가들에서 더 뚜렷하게 나타나는 것인지도 모른다. 넷째, 정당의 정책입장의 변화는 경쟁하는 주요정당의 정책변화에 영향을 받기도 한다. 또한 이슈유형에 따라 위치이슈와 합의이슈로 구분할 수 있는데, 각 국가별 선거경쟁과 복지국가 논의는 다양한 형태를 가지면서 진행된다.

• Korean Journal of Legislative Studies
• /
• v.17 no.3
• /
• pp.145-170
• /
• 2011

당원중심 정당조직이 약화되고 있는 정당정치 변화추세 및 진성당원이 절대 부족한 실정에서 의원이나 원외위원장에 의해 동원되고 있는 당원들이 참여하는 경선의 현실적인 한계를 고려한다면, 당원 이외 유권자도 참여하는 보다 개방적인 경선을 지향할 수밖에 없는 상황이다. 이번에 국민경선의 확대내지는 제도화를 목표로 중앙선관위 및 한나라당과 민주당의 개혁특위가 제시하고 있는 공천안, 특히 모든 유권자가 참여할 수 있는 여야 동시 완전국민경선안은 선거인단을 모집하여 실시하는 기존의 제한적 국민경선보다 불공정한 동원, 역선택 등의 문제 해결에 도움이 되리라 본다. 하지만 여전히 해소되야 할 경선 공정성과 관련된 구조적인 문제는 경선이 치러지는 지역의 정당조직이 비민주적으로 운영되는 데에서 비롯되는 경선 후보들 간의 불균형 문제이며, 전략공천이라는 형태로 치러지는 사실상 하향식 공천 역시 경선 공정성을 크게 훼손할 소지가 있으므로 정당의 전략공천 비율은 더욱 축소되어야 할 것이다. 2012년 총선이 임박한 상황에서 현실적으로 무엇보다 시급한 것은 한나라당, 민주당 모두 공천제도 개혁안을 조속히 확정하고 선관위안을 법제화하는 일이며, 이를 통하여 유권자가 참여하는 정당경선의 제도화가 이루어질 때 최근 시민후보의 등장과 같은 시민사회의 도전으로부터 비롯된 정당정치의 위기상황을 더욱 새로운 정당정치로 나아가는 계기로 전환시키는 일도 보다 용이해 질 것이다.

• Korean Journal of Legislative Studies
• /
• v.15 no.1
• /
• pp.5-38
• /
• 2009

This study analyzes the relationship since 1988 between National Assembly, president and political parties in Korea, and to find critical conditions for developing a mutually beneficial relationship among them. It argues that the levels of both internal power concentration and cohesiveness(or discipline) of political parties matter greatly, and applies them as theoretical framework for the historical review. By 2002, major political parties were highly concentrated in power and their discipline was strong. Consequently parties fought collectively with each other and Assemblies repeatedly saw standoffs and deadlocks. Reforms of 2002-04 that sought higher degree of party democracy and more autonomy among members of National Assembly have not been able to bring in a productive legislative-president relationship. A cohesive faction politics under the leadership of (potential) presidential candidates keeps it from growing. This study suggests further democratization of party power and more autonomy to individual Assembly members.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
• /
• v.15 no.1
• /
• pp.69-76
• /
• 2017

This paper focus on universal values and characteristics of populist parties of the Western Europe. Moreover, the causes of the European populist parties successful political activities in the European society, in which democracy is relatively established, quite stably, examined as well. Populist political activities based on simple speech are evidently unfair political actions mobilizing the unreasonable populace. populist politics is difficult to coexist with the modern Western European democracy.

• Korean Journal of Legislative Studies
• /
• v.23 no.1
• /
• pp.37-79
• /
• 2017

The major purpose of this paper is to analyze the evolution of the presidential system in South Korea during the past three decades ever since the country's democratization in 1987 from the comparative institutional perspective. As imperial presidentialism during the so-called three Kim's era(1987-2003) disappeared right after the political retirement of the three Kims in 2003, then president-centered presidentialism emerged during the post-three Kim's era, since the country's recent three presidents possessed their relatively low-level of partisan power in terms of their control of National Assemblies and their respective presidents' parties during their presidencies. South Korea has now a strong possibility to transform the current president-centered presidentialism into the American-style separatist presidential system in the near future, since the country's National Assembly has continuously been making its efforts to function as an effective governing body being compatible with the American Congress. In addition, the country's judiciary branch has effectively been playing a political role like the US supreme court ever since the country's democratization in 1987. It is also emphasized that South Korea's civic society is currently playing as a guardian of democracy through its effective and responsive political participations in many public sectors for promoting civic liberties, public welfare, and other democratic values. South Korea now needs to carry out constitutional revisions, political reforms of legislative system, party system, and electoral system as well as correct some contradictory political understandings and habits in a way to transform the current president-centered presidentialism into American-style separatist presidential system in the near future.

• Korean Journal of Legislative Studies
• /
• v.25 no.3
• /
• pp.5-31
• /
• 2019

In the process of changing the Korean electoral system, various terms such as representation, majority, minority, plurality, and proportionality are not used correctly, making normative judgment on its desirable electoral system difficult. This paper clarifies the concepts and terminology related to the electoral system in order to enable proper normative discussion. First, the misuse of the names of the electoral system is reviewed. This includes the majority representative system versus the minority representative system, the single-member constituency versus the multi-member constituency, the absolute majority system versus the relative majority system, and the majority representative system versus the proportional representative system. Next, the principles of representation, proportionality, democracy, direct ballot, and equal ballot are discussed to evaluate the decisions made by the Constitutional Court of Korea. In the current electoral system of the National Assembly, the equivalence between its constituency member and its proportional representation member is very low in terms of proportionality between votes received and seats allotted. Finally, the coherence between proportional representation and other political institutions is examined. Strengthening the proportionality of parliamentary elections alone does not necessarily increase the proportionality of the entire power structure.

• The Korean Publising Journal, Monthly
• /
• s.251
• /
• pp.26-26
• /
• 1999

보비오가 근대적인 정치이념으로서의 중도좌파(사회민주주의)이념과 제도로서의 좌파정당의 유효성을 강조하는 반면, 기든스.벡.래쉬는 성찰적 근대화 이전의 전통적인 좌파이념과 좌파정당의 한계를 강조하고 있다.

• Journal of Korean Philosophical Society
• /
• v.145
• /
• pp.351-380
• /
• 2018

In every society, citizens must decide how to punish criminals, uphold the virtue of justice, and preserve the security of the community. In doing so, the members of society must ask themselves how they will punish those who carry out the most abhorrent of crimes. Many common responses to such a question is that death is an acceptable punishment for the most severe crimes. But to draw some theoretical distinction between a crime that deserves incarceration and a crime that is so heinous that it deserves capital punishment is subject to three errors. First, what possible line could be drawn? To decide on a particular number of deaths or to employ any standard would be arbitrary. Second, the use of a line would trivialize and undermine the deaths of those whose murderers fell below the standard. Third, any and all executions still are unjust, as the State should not degrade the institution of justice and dehumanize an individual who, although he or she has no respect for other human life, is still a living person. Simply put, all murders are heinous, all are completely unacceptable, and deserve the greatest punishment of the land; however, death as punishment is inappropriate. Also, while this article arrives at the conclusion that the death penalty is an inappropriate form of punishment, I have not offered an acceptable alternative that would appease those who believe capital offenders deserve a punishment that differs in its quality and severity. This is a burden that, admittedly, I am unable to meet. I finally conclude that the death penalty is unjustified retribution. This is the only claim that can effectively shift the intellectual paradigms of the participants in the debate. The continued use of the death penalty in society can only be determined and influenced by the collective conscience of the members of that society. As stated at the outset of this article, it is this essentially moral conflict regarding what is just and degrading that forms the backdrop for the past changes in and the present operation of our system of imposing death as a punishment for crime.