[EDITORIALS]Majority doesn’t rule?

According to a survey conducted by the JoongAng Ilbo on how to deal with the National Security Law, 66 percent said that the law should be amended or revised. Sixteen percent said that it should be maintained as it is. All in all, more than 80 percent of the surveyed people agreed that the current law should be maintained in some form. Only 14 percent wanted to abolish it completely. Among those who favored an amendment, 67 percent of the Uri Party supporters were included.
The people’s will is crystal clear. The governing party and the president should not ignore public opinion. This debate has been going on for some time, and it is safe to say that most people have heard the arguments. If that is true, the majority of public opinion should prevail. A law that does not have the backing of a majority has already lost its justification.
It is hard to understand why an administration that prides itself on being called the “participatory government” is so keen on going against the will of the majority. When the president was impeached, this was an administration that used public opinion to criticize a legal decision by the National Assembly. Now, it is doing the opposite, making one wonder if this administration has any principles.
The Uri Party argues that people who don’t want the law completely abolished are guilty of using “Cold War logic.” Does that mean that about 80 percent of the people are Cold War fanatics? If someone agrees with the party, does that mean he is for reform? And if he does not, does it mean he is an ultra-conservative who does not know any better?
The majority of the people who opted for amendment of the law argue that the changed relationship between South and North Korea should be reflected in the National Security Law. Nevertheless, they think it reasonable that we have to consider the realities of political and military confrontation with the North. After the president’s National Security Law abolition speech, violators of the law immediately said they would refuse to appear before courts, and material on Kim Il Sung is making the rounds on the Internet. Does the president fail to see such things?
A law has to reflect society to have real authority. That is why a change in the National Security Law is needed. The problem is not one of conservatives against liberals, and it should not be used for political purposes.