[Opinion] Prime Minister’s Instructions

Hierarchies exist everywhere; the world of laws is no exception. At the summit is the constitution, and laws, enforcement orders (presidential orders), and enforcement regulations come next. Additionally, prime ministerial instructions follow as internal guidance for guiding and overseeing an administrative organization. Subordinate rules that contradict the hierarchic order are made invalid by the constitutional court’s decisions that they are unconstitutional. A prime ministerial instruction on the other hand is not binding externally. Issues that concern the right and duty of the people in general cannot be regulated by a prime ministerial instruction.

But the current government easily carries out instructions that openly break the accepted legal order. Notable is the attempt to control the freedom of press, a constitutional right, in various ways via prime ministerial instructions. Even scholars of law in underdeveloped countries would laugh at this. What makes the situation even more hilarious is the fact that the president is a former legal practitioner who has worked as both as a lawyer and a judge. And Government Information Agency Chairman Kim Chang-ho is performing a sword dance with the prime ministerial instruction in his hands. It is no more than the “basis for press control” disguised as “press support.”

Clause 1, Article 11 of the controversial ministerial instruction states that, “Support by a government employee for press legwork should be discussed with the public relations division,” and Clause 2 that says, “The division for publicizing policies will inform [the press] afterwards.” These are the poison pill clauses that provide for the blockage of legwork coverage, causing disputes with the press. The Government Information Agency even came up with bargain offers as if it would grant the press privileges if the press cooperates with its plans to merge and abolish the press rooms in each ministry (and use a consolidated press room). Negotiations that push and pull freedom of the press are absurd. This issue concerns itself with more than the numerous pages of prime ministerial instructions in the past.

Freedom of press belongs to the people. It’s not something the government bestows on people as if giving candy to a child. It is the most basic of rights and is the essential element for achieving a liberal democracy. This is why the First Amendment to the United States Constitution defines freedom of press as an inviolable right. The prime ministerial instruction is undoubtedly unconstitutional. Why is Prime Minister Han Duck-soo not opposing this when his position is being tarnished? How long will he keep on singing, “Yong-bi-eo-cheon-ga?”

Editorial Writer Yuk Jeong-soo, sooya@donga.com