[Editorial] Reasons Why We Worry about the National Identity of the ROK

Grand National Party leader Park Geun-hye’s allegations that the Roh Moo-hyun regime is damaging the national identity are not something that should be treated lightly. If “this regime is veering from prosperity and creativity towards the destruction of the country’s fundamentals” as she alleged, we should run down the reasons and the backdrop to such accusations. The ruling Uri Party discounted them as an outmoded ideological offensive. However, the issue at stake must not be seen in the light of a political feud.

There may be an alternate explanation to the cases of a damaged national identity enumerated by Park: a government fact-finder’s designation of long-term leftist prisoners as contributors to democratization, and the president’s sanction of the military over a North Korean vessel’s violation of the Northern Limit Line. However, the problem is why such an alternative is seen by the public as damaging to the national identity of the Republic of Korea. Is this because all of the public is conservative old guards? Of course not.

The reason squarely lies with the incumbent regime. It lies with the regime’s “sense of mission,” which views the modern history of the country as a confrontation between good and evil, with a determination to punish evil even if that means digging up bygones. In history, glory and shame, and merit and demerit are bound to overlap. If they believe they can be an infallible judge of the period in which they didn’t live, their wrong consciousness and passion will certainly make anybody worry about the national identity.

The national identity of the Republic of Korea is stipulated in the Constitution: the liberal democratic basic order, and the democratic republic grounded in the market economy. These are the values and spirit that should not be damaged. The absolute do-or-die mission of the president and rulers is to defend the Constitution and the national identity. The regime should not forget that it is held accountable for defending the Constitution for a certain period of time by the public.

The regime must not harm the national identity with its sentimental nationalism, biased and dogmatic view of history, and the use of political expediency in the interpretation of history to evict the old mainstream from power. This is why we are worrying about the national identity of the Republic of Korea.

Reporter Lee Jae-ho, leejaeho@donga.com