" Win-Win Solution for National Unity is Needed Now”

The core brains who have been charged with playing key roles to handle national conflicts during past administrations underline that politicians should focus on a “win-win” solution in order not to expand and reproduce the disruptive situation in the face of the unprecedented presidential impeachment.

-A turning point for reviving communication and compromise

These political veterans all agreed that a climate where dialogue and compromise are generally appreciated should be built in a bid to minimize conflicts. Lee Jong-chan, the former chief of the National Intelligence Service said, “To prevent politics from expanding chaos even after the general election, the coming election should function as a filter for selecting candidates with healthy discussion skills and who are capable policy makers, rather than those who are “all talks but no action.”

-Opinion in civil society should be collected in peace

In the event of the impeachment case, some suggested that the conflicts should be settled in line with the social consensus, saying that the intention of the Assembly and that of the public could come into conflict.

“Public opinion on the impeachment conditions can be helpful to resolving the problem,” said Han Sang-jin, the former presidential advisor of the policy planning committee. “When public opinions are expressed in peaceful, free ways, and the majority’s silence comes out in a sensible manner, impeachment disputes can be a driving force for political advancement.”

-President Roh also has to change

President Roh Moo-hyun is being asked for more capacity to form a political climate where specific and productive policies are dominating. Kim Jung-nam, a former presidential secretary for education, culture and social affairs, pointed out that the president might well function as a mediator of the conflicts, and that both the ruling and the opposition parties also need to get out from demagogic politics.

-Tolerance for opponents is required from the president

Many of them requested that the president should function as a center of consensus, rather than siding with one party, and that the basic function of politics, reconciliation and unity for example, will be normalized accordingly.

“National politics cannot be unified if the president considers his political opponent as enemies,” stressed Lee Won-jong, the former presidential advisor of public affairs. “The problems will be settled only if the president identifies himself as a Korean citizen, by also taking responsibilities for opposition parties and political leaders.” Furthermore, Lee asserted that it was wrong for the president to have tried to solve controversial issues by holding press conferences instead of taking logical and reasonable steps, or to have taken little consideration of his violation of the law. Who in the nation would listen to him saying that the public should respect the law, said Lee.

-The middle-of-the-roaders should raise their voice = Not an emotional reaction, but a composed dialogue can only figure out the problems

Lee Gak-bum, the former presidential advisor of policy planning, indicated, “Apart from the pessimistic economic perspective of some domestic agencies, foreign investors are rather being calm with regard to the political status.” Lee pointed out that a conception of ‘impeachment equals confusion’ would make the situation even worse and more complicated. He suggested that a powerful neutral group should be formed in order to mediate the conflicts between class, generation and region.

-The Press should remained unbiased

Some warned that the press should not report every action of political parties in terms of its strategy to make use of the impeachment case in the coming general election. “Now is the very moment when the press has to face issues with an objective viewpoint. It should not give the public an image of backing a certain party, nor provide unbalanced information about one against the other, ” said Kim Jong-in, the former presidential economic advisor.

Sung-Won Park swpark@donga.com