A brief reflection on the Roman Republic

KIM SEUNG-JUNG
The author is a professor of archaeology at the University of Toronto.

Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s election victory was officially confirmed with 87 percent of the vote, the most in history. Putin is to continue his fifth term until 2030 since first taking office in 2000.

Various Western media outlets criticized the Russian election as rigged and denounced surveillance on residents, forced voting and manipulation. Moreover, the Putin regime systematically checked on opponents by imprisoning or deporting politically influential figures. The total amount of votes the other three candidates earned was less than 4 percent.

People often consider ancient Greece as the root of Western democracy with the adoption of direct democracy. But the 500 years of the ancient Roman Republic (from 509 BC to 27 BC) also has a lot in common with the modern democratic system. The consul — the highest elected public official of the republic — had authorities similar to today’s president, but two consuls were elected each year, allowing vetoes of each other’s decisions. The candidates for consuls were nominated by the Senate and decided through a vote at a public rally.

The Roman Senate was a political organization of long history and endurance. The Senate with 300 to 600 members was a governing body that effectively controlled the overall social and political decisions. It played a role in maintaining political balance of the Roman Republic by not allowing one person to dominate power decisively. Of course, this held true only until Julius Caesar led his army across the Rubicon River and took control of the government.

Rome’s first dictator was eventually stabbed 23 times and killed by senators seeking to restore the Republic, but the future of the Roman Empire was irreversible, just as Caesar said — “The die is cast.” As unhealthy imperial power and authority of Christianity were combined, Rome entered the path to absolute power. It can be said that the Korean electoral system at least has some healthy aspects from Greece’s direct democracy and the Roman Republic.