Young people shouting for a 'fraudulent election rerun' at Jamsil. Ⓒ Hanmi Ilbo  

Why must we live in a country where freedom and justice flow like a river? This question is a fundamental inquiry into human dignity that has been repeatedly asked throughout human history.

The answer is clear. An individual without freedom is merely reduced to a slave who has lost their subjectivity, and a society devoid of justice becomes a jungle of the fittest, where injustice and absurdity prevail.

The existence of freedom and justice is not merely a problem for our current generation. It is a critical historical task for humanity that profoundly affects the lives of our descendants and even determines their destiny.

The Constitution of the Republic of Korea clearly defines the 'free democratic basic order' as the foundation of the state. The core values of freedom, human rights, and the rule of law that the constitution aims for ultimately converge into the two great pillars of 'freedom' and 'justice'.

However, is this the reality we face today? The values guaranteed by the constitution are being silently eroded, and we witness bizarre phenomena everywhere where citizens are voluntarily relinquishing their freedoms. Why are we now on the verge of losing our freedom and justice? Who, and how, are they blinding us and stealing our freedom? We must soberly dissect the reality of this immense crisis.

Why are they trying to remove the word 'freedom' from the Constitution?

The first path through which we lose our freedom is political and systemic perversion. For the past several years, we have witnessed a series of attempts during the constitutional amendment process to deliberately delete the word 'freedom.' To erase freedom from the constitution is not a mere textual revision. We view this as an attempt to strip citizens of their substantive freedom and transition Korea from a liberal democracy to a system of people's democracy or popular democracy.

In addition, a populist system that favors a 'Big Government' directly suppresses people's freedom. History proves the answer to the question, "Between a big government and a small government, which one better guarantees people's freedom?" Big government inevitably generates regulations and monitors and disciplines people's political and economic freedom, as well as their daily lives.

The former Soviet Union, with its numerous government ministries and vast bureaucratic organizations, attempting to control every aspect of individual life, is a classic example. The larger the government grows, the more the private sphere of citizens diminishes.

North Korea is the ultimate embodiment of the tragedy of such a totalitarian system. North Korea also has a formal constitution. However, its system is a thorough one-man dictatorship where the Workers' Party exists above the constitution, and above the party reigns the 'Leader,' referred to as the absolute dignity.

All power flows from a single person, the Leader. The moment infallibility and absoluteness are bestowed upon a human being, that person effectively replaces the position of a god.

The moment a human ascends to the status of a god, the existence of a religious absolute is denied, and the freedom of faith, the most fundamental spiritual realm for humans, naturally perishes.

Political forces that seize power through illegal and unjust means invariably dedicate themselves to restricting people's freedom to maintain that power permanently. Their ultimate goal is perpetual rule, and to achieve this, they reorganize the state's institutions and systems into a totalitarian regime disguised as a 'big government.'

As George Orwell warned in 'Animal Farm,' the deceptive slogan 'All animals are equal' eventually degenerates into the strategy of a ruling class for permanent power: 'Some animals are more equal than others.'

Institutional Power Submitting to Authority and the Collapse of the Separation of Powers

Liberal democracy is a system created through relentless struggle to limit power. Therefore, if this system collapses, liberal democracy is bound to crumble with it.

The corruption of political power is significantly contributed to by institutional power, which should protect the state's justice, failing to uphold its legally granted authority. Montesquieu, who laid the foundation for modern thought, declared the principle of 'separation of powers' in his book 'The Spirit of the Laws,' stating that individual freedom cannot exist unless the judiciary is separated from the legislative and executive branches. This means that the independence of the judiciary, which prevents the concentration and unchecked exercise of power, is the last bastion for protecting freedom.

However, the reality of the judiciary today renders this solemn principle meaningless. Although courts should realize judicial justice by independently adjudicating according to law and conscience, we have witnessed the judiciary making unfair and biased judgments, looking to the authorities and seeking to please the intentions of those who hold power over appointments. Justice has been disregarded, and the rule of law has collapsed due to some judges who have abandoned judicial independence and conscience for personal gain.

This phenomenon is not limited to the judiciary. Administrative officials, who are directly or indirectly influenced by power, and prosecutors, who wield the sword of immense power, often forget their original duties and degenerate into servants of power.

What is even more tragic is the fact that even academics in the ivory towers of intellect are colluding with power. Intellectuals who should be pursuing truth and criticizing social injustice are hastily concocting theories that suit the tastes of those in power, engaging in sycophantic scholarship (곡학아세) to provide academic legitimacy to dictatorial regimes. The framework of democracy, the separation of powers, is collapsing from within due to the corruption of institutional power.

Media Losing its Oversight Function and the Spiritual Pollution of the Masses

In the face of the truth that 'absolute power corrupts absolutely,' the media, which limits power and realizes the public's right to know, holds the mission of the 'Fourth Estate.' Historically, there are instances where the cries of the media and intellectuals have saved society when power attempted to conceal the truth.

The 'Dreyfus Affair' that shook France in the late 19th century is a prime example. Although the military and existing powers attempted to discredit and bury the Jewish officer Dreyfus as a spy using fake news and false evidence, the great writer Émile Zola revealed the truth to the world through his righteous article 'J'accuse…!', and the powers' conspiracy ultimately failed.

However, what is the state of our media environment today? There are countless media outlets that have forgotten their original mission, fawning over power and seeking personal gain. Their behavior is no different from state-controlled propaganda organizations that disseminate only articles that suit the regime's taste, much like the former Soviet Communist Party organ 'Pravda' (paradoxically meaning 'truth' in Russian), China's 'People's Daily,' and North Korea's 'Rodong Sinmun.' It has become commonplace to have reports that intentionally ignore facts, distort the truth, and incite the public with biased ideological lenses.

These biased reports and distorted propaganda unconsciously pollute the minds of the general public. Citizens repeatedly exposed to a specific political ideology lose their ability to think for themselves and degenerate into passive masses with paralyzed critical thinking.

This is the realization of 'Doublethink,' as predicted by George Orwell in '1984,' a state of mental servitude where people, despite clearly seeing the regime's lies, believe them to be true.

We must remember Germany under the Nazis. At the post-WWII war crimes trials, collaborators argued, "We had no choice but to follow orders from above." However, as philosopher Hannah Arendt pointed out, this was simply the sin of non-thinking, the 'banality of evil.'

We must never forget the historical mistake where not just the coercion of a single dictator, but the masses, polluted by media propaganda, voluntarily submitted to power, surrendered their freedom, and actively concurred.

The Trap of Populism: Loss of Economic Freedom and Slavery to Rationing

Along with political and spiritual oppression, the most fatal weapon that ties the hands of the people is the deprivation of economic freedom. Economic freedom is based on the right to private property and includes the freedom of commercial activity and the freedom of movement and residence. Without the guarantee of private property, an independent life for individuals cannot exist, and where economic self-reliance collapses, freedom vanishes like a mirage.

In his book 'The Road to Serfdom,' Friedrich Hayek precisely warned how government attempts to control and plan the economy with good intentions or for social justice lead individuals to a state of ruinous servitude. The indiscriminate, unconditional welfare programs based on populism, promoted by today's hypocritical political forces, are the starting point of such a process.

"There is no such thing as a free lunch." Citizens blinded by the various free benefits and money provided by the state gradually lose the will to work hard and earn their own living. As seen in past cases in the former Soviet Union and Argentina, once addicted to the sweet rationing system offered by the regime, the spirit of sound criticism toward the government becomes paralyzed. They degenerate into economic slaves who offer unconditional loyalty to state power solely to receive more rations and benefits.

The end for such 'giveaway' populist governments is as miserable as Venezuela's. To distribute profligate welfare policies, excessive taxation becomes commonplace, the national treasury is depleted, fiscal deficits ensue, and ultimately, extreme economic poverty is reached. The result is the tragedy of downward equalization, where the entire populace, except for a select privileged few, falls into poverty.

This was the fundamental cause of fiscal crises experienced by some countries in the past, and it serves as a vivid cautionary tale as even developed European nations are recently heading down a similar path of ruin due to left-wing populist policies.

Expansion and Defense of Vested Interests by Cartels

Another covert and powerful enemy that erodes freedom and justice is the 'cartel' that has taken root throughout society. These groups, indifferent to the interests of the nation and community, form their own exclusive interest groups, expand their privileges among themselves, and do not hesitate to engage in all sorts of illegality and corruption to defend them.

From political cartels that abuse their power, delegated by the people, with special immunity and populist legislation, to education cartels that indoctrinate future generations with their ideological biases and reap benefits; judicial cartels that monopolize key positions in the judiciary through specific legal research societies and trade judgments; labor cartels that hold the national economy hostage by representing only the interests of privileged laborers; and media cartels that distort the truth and blind the public's eyes—their forms are truly diverse.

These vocational cartels obstruct fair competition, nullify the rule of law, and distort the standards of social justice. The more entrenched the cartel's vested interests become, the more opportunities are denied to the vast majority of ordinary citizens, and economic and social freedoms are severely restricted. To protect their vested interests, they are prone to becoming anti-state entities that condone or even participate in the collapse of the national system or the distortion of elections, the symbol of sovereignty. Therefore, without dismantling these rigid cartels, the realization of true freedom and justice is impossible.

Only Vigilant Citizens Can Protect Freedom and Justice

The essence of power dynamics, as understood throughout human history, lies in greed and expansion. Therefore, freedom and justice are not free gifts like air (Freedom is not free) and are very fragile, requiring defense with blood and sweat in every generation. The ultimate bastion that can protect them is ultimately the citizens themselves.

Only when there are many vigilant citizens who possess rational insight and do not hesitate to offer sharp criticism and point out injustice in response to even the slightest movements by power and interest cartels can freedom and justice be protected.

Especially in light of the unprecedented situation in the recent June 3rd local elections where ballots were insufficient for citizens to exercise their suffrage, and allegations of fraud are surfacing everywhere, it is truly shocking. It is only natural that the entire nation must remain vigilant at all times, as the integrity and fairness of elections, which should be the flower of democracy, have collapsed, and the nation is in crisis.

If we close our eyes, our freedom disappears; if we remain silent, our justice is buried. To counter the current administration's unconstitutional actions and allegations of electoral fraud, and to protect the destiny of our generation and future generations, we must always remain awake and keep our eyes wide open in vigilance.

◆ Dr. Shin Dong-chun

Doctor of Public Administration, Representative of the National Union for Freedom and Unification. After passing the 21st Higher Civil Service Examination, he served in public office before actively engaging as a corporate CEO, university professor, media contributor, author, and Chairman of the Global Aerospace Industry Association.