During a New Year's address on Monday, President Moon Jae-in praised the progress made in South Korean democracy, saying the country has "matured" and is now being acknowledged by the rest of the world.
During a speech delivered on the main stairwell of Cheong Wa Dae on Monday morning, Moon stated that "the government, which was launched without a transition committee in the face of an impeachment of the president, which was unprecedented in constitutional history, straightened up the collapsed constitutional order and advanced democracy." Moon said that the government had "straightened up the collapsed constitutional order and advanced democracy."
Mr. Moon asserted that his administration had institutionalized reform of authority, in which the concepts of checks and balances were put into effect, so that authority could no longer exercise control over the populace.
In his speech, the president stated that "the wall of authority has been reduced and the engagement of citizens has become more active." As a result, "it has evolved into a society with increased transparency and openness, as well as a country with greater press freedom and human rights."
As an allusion to the upcoming presidential election, which he believes "will determine the future of the country," he expressed the hope that it would serve as the setting for a democratic festival, which will be chosen by the people by fiercely competing for their lives as well as that of the country.
According to him, "I believe it will be an election of togetherness that reflects the people's hope rather than an election of hate, hatred, and division." Moon asserted that the public was ultimately in charge of politics and that its participation had the potential to grow and improve democratic institutions. "I hope that the people will take an active role in the election and lead good politics," he expressed optimism.
"It is still an incomplete peace, and tensions are occasionally triggered, but the situation on the Korean Peninsula is managed more effectively than it has ever been," he said of the ongoing calm on the peninsula. To us, as a divided nation, there is no value more important than peace, especially for those of us who have experienced war."
"Peace is a precondition for prosperity, and it cannot be achieved without it." It is, nevertheless, quite easy to destabilize peace if it is not institutionalized. "I will do all in my power until the conflict is declared over," he added, reiterating his plea for the proclamation of the war's end.
"We must not lose sight of the fact that the current peace was achieved and sustained through the inter-Korean and North Korea-US conversations, which were spearheaded by us," he continued.
He urged the North to respond, saying, "Now is the time when the will and cooperation between the two Koreas are more important than anything else." He went on to say, "If we talk and cooperate again, the international community will respond," implying that the international community would respond if the North responded.
Moon stated that he would put policies in place to help stabilize house prices on a proactive basis. Some observers believe that the rise in real estate prices has been the most significant failure of his government. In his New Year's address last year, he expressed regret to those "who are discouraged as a result of the difficulty of housing problems."
"We will increase the supply of homes for end-users while maintaining the downward trend in housing costs," he stated, vowing that the problem will not be passed on to the next administration. As he stated, "We will prepare a new turning point," he added that decentralization of the Seoul metropolitan region was a crucial answer to the city's housing insufficiency problem.
He committed to putting forth all effort to promote the Busan-Ulsan-Gyeongnam collaboration as a successful example for the future. Moon took a ride on a new cross-regional railway, which runs between Ulsan and Busan, in December of last year.
