[EDITORIAL] Doubtful Ruling Party Suggestion

Kim Joong-kwon, chairman of the Millennium Democratic Party, suggested to the opposition that they declare jointly they would not stall parliamentary sessions throughout the year. It is a welcome proposal in light of the National Assembly's frequent breakdowns with railroading of bills, sit-ins, outdoor rallies and filibusters. But we are unsure whether the ruling party has put it forth with a true will to end parliamentary havoc. This gesture smacks of a tactical maneuver to shift the responsibility to the opposition. If the ruling camp really hopes for a smooth sailing in the Assembly, it is crucial to restore trust between the two camps.

Both the ruling party and the opposition are to blame for disrupted parliamentary operations. If anything, the ruling party, at the helm of political management, has a larger share of responsibility. After the opening of the 16th Assembly last year, the ruling party was in the vanguard to break the calm with several filibusters. Also, the Assembly was paralyzed this year because of the ruling party's politics of force. It farmed out its lawmakers to a coalition party and incurred the opposition's wrath with the launch of an investigation into the alleged diversion of the spy agency's funds. If the ruling party resorts to tricks but asks the other side to abide by the law, who will accept such a demand? For the Assembly to run properly, the ruling party should be the first one to reflect on its past misdeeds and demonstrate the will to promote mutual survival.

Mr. Kim is the very person who has invited doubts over the purity of the prosecution's probe into the agency's funds with his premature statement and criticism of the opposition. In his remarks suggesting the bipartisan declaration of an uninterrupted Assembly, he again brought up the agency's funds.

Since he took office, Chairman Kim's behavior has not met the test of broadminded politics. His remarks and policies impart a whiff of the politics of coercion from the authoritarian days. Stressing law and principles and advocating a strong ruling party, he talked about recruiting 10 percent of the voters as his party members. What he called "the mentality of the ruling party" sounds like an intention to shut off dialogue in the party, another relic of the old era. A generous attitude is more essential than 100 declarations.