President Lee's Reform Push Needs Public Consensus to Succeed

President Lee Jae-myung on the 9th broadly addressed reforms spanning not only the prosecution and judiciary but also labor, economy, and media sectors, emphasizing that "we must be careful not to burn down the house trying to catch bedbugs."

In a post titled "Surgical correction is often useful for reform" on X (formerly Twitter), President Lee stated, "To solve problems, we must accurately identify causes and clearly distinguish the good from the bad."

This followed his message the previous day on X that "having authority means bearing an equal amount of responsibility," urging ruling party hardliners pushing for prosecutorial and judicial reform to moderate their pace. He has now issued another political message.

It is meaningful that the nation's top leader acknowledged the difficulties of reform. His determination to prevent potential resistance and public division during the reform process is also evident. Notably, he emphasized the need for precision—like surgical procedures that excise only the affected area—to minimize reform side effects.

With U.S. tariff pressure and Middle East risks overlapping, the president's commitment to minimizing reform aftereffects could help ease business community anxieties.

If reforms serve the nation's future and public benefit, they should be actively pursued. However, without grounding reforms in rule of law based on common sense and fairness, gaining public consensus will be difficult.

In this regard, it is regrettable that President Lee, while explaining reform legitimacy, referenced his own trial proceedings, characterizing judges who acquitted him as conscientious while describing prosecutors who indicted him as politicized.

As President Lee himself stated, the president represents all citizens, not one political camp. Reform based on binary thinking—where only I am right and opponents are wrong—cannot win public consent.

For "surgical reform" to succeed, arbitrary exercise of power must be excluded and transparent, fair rules established. Only then can support extend beyond partisan logic and special interest groups to the broader public.

When the government commits to pragmatic reforms that resonate with most citizens, it can reduce social costs of confrontation and conflict while achieving economic advancement and national unity.

The success or failure of reform depends not on words but on actual actions.