Asking for a conservative political party to be disbanded, and taking issue with a judge who did not issue an arrest warrant for K-pop star Seungri. Expressing opposition to an upcoming LGBTQ pride parade, and calling on the government not to accept refugees.

These are only some of the requests that have flooded Cheong Wa Dae’s online petition system in recent months. 
 
Thanks to the system, South Koreans are closer than ever to the president as anyone can anonymously file a petition seeking the attention of the nation’s most powerful person.

While the petition system is seen as an example of direct democracy, there are also concerns that it is being abused as a channel for venting emotions, causing division in the society, hurting the separation of powers and alienating minorities.


Controversial petitions

Since its launch in August 2017 by the Moon Jae-in administration, the petition system has become a vital tool to gauge public opinion, leading lawmakers and government officials to be more aware of and responsive to citizens’ demands.

The online petition board has seen tens of thousands of petitions on a variety of subjects, ranging from highly personal complaints to divisive social and political issues.

According to data from the National Information Society Agency on some 160,000 petitions that were posted on the website from its inception through May 13, calls for political reform accounted for the highest proportion, 18 percent. This was followed by petitions concerning human rights and gender equality at 10 percent, safety and environmental issues at 7.7 percent, and child-rearing and education at 7.4 percent. 

The petition system has already resulted in changes to the country’s laws.

For example, drunk drivers who cause fatal accidents now face tougher penalties, up to life imprisonment. A law dealing with sexual violence was also revised to toughen punishments for the distribution of hidden camera footage.

Some petitions, on the other hand, are politically charged.

A petition calling for the dissolution of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party garnered more than 1.8 million signatures after it was posted April 22, when the party was locking horns with the ruling Democratic Party over a set of bills.

Soon a petition calling for the dissolution of the ruling party also appeared on the site. It gathered nearly 330,000 signatures.

Rep. Na Kyung-won, floor leader of the Liberty Korea Party, calls the presidential petition board a “mobocracy,” arguing that it divides Koreans and incites political conflict.

President Moon is also the subject of a petition. As of Monday a petition requesting his impeachment, posted April 30, exceeded the 200,000 mark. The presidential office now needs to offer a response.

Some petitions ask the government to wield influence over the judiciary or parliament.

When a local court refused to issue an arrest warrant for Seungri, a former member of the K-pop band Big Bang, earlier this month due to lack of evidence, a petition was posted calling for the dismissal of the judge. It gathered some 75,000 signatures.

In such cases, Cheong Wa Dae has refused to respond, citing the separation of powers.

Some petitions are highly controversial -- in a few cases, the petitioners seem to be asking the government to take action that could undermine democratic values.

One petition calling for the abolition of the 2013 Refugee Act got 710,000 signatures. Some 220,000 people expressed support for a petition opposing a pride parade set to take place at Seoul Plaza to raise awareness about LGBTQ issues.

Some petitions are fraudulent.

Earlier this month, a man in his 20s had his case referred to the prosecution in connection with a petition that appears to have been based on lies. In the petition, he asked for help for a family member he said had been beaten by a group of teenagers. The petition caused a public uproar after collecting some 100,000 signatures, when it came out that there was no evidence any such incident had occurred.

Many of them are based on the petitioners’ personal likes and dislikes -- for example, some call for the disbandment of particular K-pop groups or a ban on public rallies that cause heavy traffic in central Seoul.

The presidential office is aware of the problems.

In February, Im Jong-seok, former presidential chief of staff, admitted that there were some petitions Cheong Wa Dae could not really comment on.

The government responds to petitions that gain more than 200,000 signatures within 30 days.

It made some changes to the petition system in March, requiring 100 signatures for any petition to be shown on the public petition board.


Direct democracy vs. people’s court

The petition site has become a popular platform for Koreans to voice their opinions directly amid deepening public distrust in media and in establishment politics, observers say.

“The reason the board is flooded with petitions is because their voices are not represented in the media, civil society or the parliament,” said Lee Jae-keun, director of the civic watch department at People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy.

“I think the system in itself is very much in line with democracy. Such petitions that do not make sense do not get enough signatures and they will eventually be filtered out over time.”

But other experts warn against the current phenomenon, which they say challenges the rule of law and the separation of powers.

“It is too extreme. It is spreading the idea that the government can solve and do everything, holding control over the parliament and judiciary,” said Kim Hyung-joon, a professor at Myongji University.

“The intention might have been good, but there is a danger of administrative dictatorship,” he said.

There are also concerns over how far the petition board accurately represents public sentiment.

Anybody can log on via social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, which means one person can use multiple IDs to sign the same petition several times.

“In our political system, it has become the norm for the public to voice their opinions directly to the president, with much power concentrated on the president,” said Lee Taek-gwang, a professor at Kyunghee University. 

“The petition system is seen as a symbol of the president’s willingness to communicate with the people, but it is far from helping realize direct democracy,” he said. “Without fixing the parliamentary system, which can represent a variety of public opinions, the concentration of power on the president will continue.”

(laeticia.ock@heraldcorp.com)