PSPD in English About PSPD 2019-07-20   3052

[Annual Report 2018] A National Assembly that Reflects the Will of the People is Essential for Electoral System Reform.

A National Assembly that Reflects the Will of the People is Essential for Electoral System Reform.

#Mixed-member proportional representation #Electoral system reform #National Assembly Special Activity Expenses #Freedom of Expression of Voters #Local Elections

 

Now is the Right Time to Adopt the Mixed-member Proportional Representation System.

The current electoral system turns more than half of the cast votes into dead votes, does not appropriately reflect public opinions, and is advantageous only for large political parties. In 2018, Peoples Solidarity for Participatory Democracy (PSPD) highlighted the urgent need for electoral reform. Reform is essential to improve political participation, and the proportional representation of the public in the National Assembly. PSPD is also a member of “Joint Action for Political Reform,” a union of numerous civil society groups. Joint Action for Political Reform believes that the second of half of 2018, which sees the beginning of preparations for the 2020 general election, is also the right time to start adopting a mixed-member proportional representation system. We cooperated with the seven major political parties and hosted many activities and events urging the adoption of the mixed-member proportional representation system. These activities included press conferences, one-person protests, petitions, cultural festivals “A Very Political Night”, and rallies “Fireworks Rally and March to Urge Electoral System Reform”.

 

Voter Suffrage Must be Guaranteed in Local Elections

The 7th nationwide general election was held in 2018. Prior to the election, there was gerrymandering at seven city and provincial council elections, including those held in Seoul, Busan, Daegu and Incheon. As a result, voters lost the chance to cast their votes for parties other than the largest two. As a member of Joint Action for Political Reform, we submitted a constitutional appeal denouncing gerrymandering and political collusion. Local elections centered around the candidates and political parties end up marginalizing the voters. For these alienated voters, we carried out meetings such as “Local Elections Change My Life” with citizens of Seoul, Chuncheon and Daegu. We also organized a center called the “Center for Reporting Wrongdoings by Unjust Election Laws” to collect cases of voters suffering from unjust crack downs by the Central Election Management Committee (CEMC). We published reports and hosted debates on the problems of election laws that impede the freedom of expression of the voters each election season. 

 

We Revealed the Reality of the National Assembly Special Activity Expense

We won an information disclosure suit regarding the National Assembly Special Activity Expenses after three years, and revealed all the content to the public. As a result, we managed to cut unnecessary expenses and reduced the National Assembly Special Activity Expenses budget by 80%. We presented assessments on the 20th National Assembly’s legislative activities and their activities regarding major issues in Korean society over the past two years. In addition, we updated information on National Assembly members on the website “Open the National Assembly” that was created in 2004. With our efforts, the website continues to serve as a successful platform for media, researchers, and citizens to easily get their hands on important information.

 

 

Main activities

  • 04/18, 09/11 [Constitutional Appeal] Gerrymandering case in the 2018 local election in Seoul, Incheon, and Gyeongsangbuk-do.
  • 04~06 [Conference] “Local Elections Change My Life” meeting held in Seoul, Daegu, and Chuncheon, each 2-3 times.
  • 04/16 [Issue Report] Published a report on cases of voters suffering from ‘red tape’ election laws. 
  • 07/05, 08/08 [Issue Report] 2011-2013 reports 1 and 2 on the expenses of the National Assembly Special Activities Expenses.
  • 07/11 [Panel Discussions] Debate on electoral system reform, which must happen before the 2020 general election.
  • 08-09 [Conference] Conducted an agreement ceremony on the proposal for electoral system reform between Joint Action for Political Reform, Bareunmirae party, Democratic-Peace party, and the Justice party.
  • 09/16 [Issue Report] Report on the votes for steppingstone bills and obstacle bills in the first half of the 20th National Assembly.
  • 10/12 [Issue Report] Report on the activity of the first half of the 20th National Assembly, focusing on the 7 main current issues.
  • 10/31 [Cultural Festival] Urging political reform by hosting the festival “Very Political Night”, and fireworks rally in Yeouido.

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