The San Francisco sunshine is peaceful again today. Gazing at the afternoon light streaming through the window, I suddenly recalled the fantasy cabinet composed of great Korean figures I had imagined a few days ago. Since then, another imagining began to grow in my mind. It might be reckless, perhaps even a daydream. But I couldn’t ignore it.
**
The world we live in today is the fruit of the June Struggle of 1987. The cries in the streets led to constitutional amendment, and thus we gained direct presidential elections. There was also pride in having escaped authoritarianism. However, the tragedy of two presidential impeachments over the past 30 years tells us: the problem does not lie solely with the system. It was the people operating the system, more so than the system itself, who were the issue.
The laws existed. The institutions existed too. But because there were people who ignored the law, abused the system, and privatized power, everything collapsed. No matter how sophisticated the constitution, if the hands that interpret and enforce it are not just, that nation can never be just. We have painfully confirmed this fact time and again.
Therefore, I imagine a republic starting not with a new constitution for a 7th Republic, but with new people. People who can uphold even the current constitution, before rewriting it. Individuals and philosophies capable of embodying common sense, fairness, and justice. That is what I want to dream of together.
Lee Jae-myung. As a realistic contender for the next administration, I have no intention of placing infinite hope in him. Absolute faith in any politician is dangerous. However, he has proven something through the life he has lived. He survived poverty and hardship, and did not crumble despite numerous attacks. If he has survived such levels of investigation, prosecution, and trials, it seems reasonable to judge that he has no critical flaws. After all, one cannot assume that Yoon Suk-yeol’s prosecution specifically went easy on Lee Jae-myung, can they?
In any case, perhaps the Korean people today cannot help but hold onto the hope for a ‘different kind of leadership’ from Lee Jae-myung, who has endured so far without critical flaws. Just as similar kinds of expectations were placed on Park Geun-hye and Lee Myung-bak. The hope is that he will genuinely select talent based solely on skill and character, unlike Yoon Suk-yeol, who might appoint people controllable due to their weaknesses, or Lee Myung-bak, who seemed focused on sharing interests.
The achievements a nation’s president can produce depend more on “who they will achieve them with” than on their own ability and passion. Let’s hope that this time, appointments will be centered on competence and character, not on political rewards.
Below, I have put together a cabinet with figures often mentioned by others, without deep deliberation. This is not because they are necessarily the right people, but to create a starting point for considering various alternatives, rather than leaving blanks.
Prime Minister Kim Min-seok: Likely to work well with Lee Jae-myung. More analytical than emotional, more substance than rhetoric. Someone to manage the current political turmoil and provide balance to state affairs.
Deputy Prime Minister for Economy Joo Jin-hyung: Many know economics, but few have criticized the structure from ‘outside the system’ and proposed alternatives. The right person to break from the ‘Mofia’ (Ministry of Finance clique) and pursue reforms truly for the people’s livelihood.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Hyun-jong: A strategist for pragmatic diplomacy centered on national interest, especially capable of dealing with the US. If the Trump era returns, there’s no better expert on America.
Minister of Justice Jeong Seong-ho: If strong prosecution reform is needed, among the multi-term, pro-Lee faction lawmakers with legal backgrounds, Jeong Seong-ho has the stature to handle it.
Minister of National Defense Kim Byung-joo: A former 4-star general who was the first to warn about the possibility of emergency martial law. A symbolic figure to prevent the politicization of the military and return it to being the people’s army.
Minister of Health and Welfare Lee Tan-hee: A former judge seeking to practice warm welfare through actions, not just words. Someone who can lay the foundation for a welfare state.
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Moon Hyung-bae: Incorruptible. A man of few words, but firm. His voice reading the decision upholding the impeachment motion against President Yoon* was a sliver of hope for Korean society.
(Translator’s Note: This reference seems factually inaccurate as President Yoon Suk-yeol has not faced an impeachment decision upheld by the court. The author might have mistakenly referred to Yoon instead of Park Geun-hye, or is referencing a different event/hypothetical scenario involving Justice Moon.)
Minister of Unification, Chairman of the Korea Communications Commission, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Director of the National Intelligence Service: Positions yet to be named. But the people who sit in these seats must also be selected based on expertise and fairness, not loyalty to the regime. They must no longer be handmaidens of power, but the eyes, ears, and mouths of the people.
I hope this imagining is not mere fantasy. It is not about dreaming of a new administration, but about exploring the possibility of new politics. People were the problem. I hope the 7th Republic can be completed in that way—through people. And I hope its beginning starts right here, right now, from my imagination.
P.S. Please feel free to change the figures in the fantasy cabinet above with your own imagination.