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The
Republic of Korea has a democratic form of government based on the separation of
powers and a system of checks and balances. The Constitution was first
adopted in 1948 when the Republic was established, and has been revised nine
times as the country struggled to make democracy work effectively. It
guarantees the basic rights and freedoms of the people, including, but not
limited to, equality before the law, freedom from arbitrary arrest, freedom of
residence, the right to vote and hold public office, the right to privacy and
freedom of religion, speech, the press and assembly, as well as the right to a
clean environment and to seek happiness.
It also provides for various
economic rights, such as the right to own property, the right - as well as the
duty - to work, the freedom of choice of occupation and the right to collective
bargaining to obtain optimum wages and fair compensation.
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The
most recent revision of the constitution provided, among other things, for the
direct election of the President for a single five-year term and for the
institution of a system of Local Autonomy for the first time in 30 years.
These two provisions are key to the strengthening of democratic institutions in
the Republic. The revision also reinstated the right of the National
Assembly to inspect all aspects of state affairs on a regular basis, as a check
on the power of the executive. Finally, it charges the Government to seek
to reunify the nation.
The
Government consists of three branches: the legislature, in the form of a
unicameral National Assembly; the judiciary, consisting of district and
appellate courts and the Supreme Court; and the executive, headed by the
President who is the head of state and commander-in-chief of the Armed
Forces. The President is assisted by the Prime Minister and the State
Council.
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Information
provided by the Korean Embassy
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