The Presidential Office has disclosed the first part of the contents of the government-proposed bill on revising the nation's Constitution.
Hwang Hojun was at Cheongwadae for the announcement that provides a glimpse of the direction the Moon administration is going with the amendment.
Initial impressions are that the government's proposal for the constitutional amendment will articulate the nation's identity as a democracy... and put more emphasis on human rights.
Reporters were briefed on Tuesday morning by three Blue House officials, including the senior Presidential secretary for civil affairs, on the proposed Preamble to the Constitution and matters related to basic rights as well as popular sovereignty.

"First and foremost, I make it clear that the people should be the center of the Constitutional revision. The Republic of Korea that the people desire is a country that guarantees the people's freedom, safety, and the minimum quality of life as a human being."

The current Preamble to the Constitution underscores that the nation upholds the democratic ideals of the April 19th Revolution of 1960, in which people protested against electoral corruption.
The Moon administration has decided to add other democratic movements to the nation's constitutional framework, including the Busan-Masan protests of 1979, the Gwangju democratization movement of the following year, and the June 10th democracy movement in the late 80s.
The government's proposal also expands the scope of inalienable basic rights, not only to Korean citizens but to all humankind.
According to the Blue House, this reflects the international community's expectations... and the fact that there are more than 2 million foreign nationals living in Korea.
Social rights, such as education, however, will still be limited to Korean citizens.
The Blue House also wants to include the people's right to life and the right to live safely,... meaning that the government must protect the people from disasters.
That's apparently a reflection of recent tragedies including the sinking of the Sewol-ho ferry, which killed more than 300 high school students.
The government also seeks to reinforce popular sovereignty... by adding the people's right to recall elected officials and representatives,.... and also allowing people to directly propose legislation.
This would be the first time the Korean Constitution has specified such powers for the people.

"By expanding the system of direct democracy on such a large scale, I believe it will complement the existing representative system and greatly contribute to the development of democracy."

And the Blue House will reveal more of the proposal; Wednesday will cover decentralization, and on Thursday it'll be the rights and privileges of constitutional institutions, including the form of government.
The Blue House will prepare the bill for submission on March 26th.
HWANG Hojun, Arirang News.