Lee reignites debate on constitutional reform on Constitution Day

President Lee Jae-myung speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the presidential office in Seoul on July 15 2025 Yonhap — President Lee Jae-myung speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the presidential office in Seoul on July 15, 2025. Yonhap

SEOUL, July 17 (AJP) - President Lee Jae-myung called for constitutional reform on Thursday, as South Korea marks the 77th anniversary of Constitution Day.

In a message posted on Facebook, Lee said, "It is time to revise the Constitution to keep up with the changing times, just as people change their clothes with the seasons," implying the need to amend the Constitution to reform the country's five-year, single-term presidency along with other political reforms.

Constitutional reform has been up for consideration several times before but has never succeeded. He then urged the National Assembly to take the lead in the process.

Praising the country's democratic resilience in overcoming numerous adversities and crises throughout its painful history including disgraced former President Yoon Suk Yeol's Dec. 3 declaration of martial law last year, Lee stressed that a revised Constitution should serve as a "pathfinder for taking a new step toward a future grounded in the rule of law."

In celebration of the proclamation of the Constitution on July 17, 1948, Constitution Day was observed as one of the country's major national holidays until it was scrapped in 2008, when the government decided to reduce the number of public holidays after the five-day workweek took effect across the board.

Meanwhile, Kang Dae-sik of the main opposition People Power Party proposed a bill last week to reinstate Constitution Day as a national holiday. A slew of other lawmakers have consistently submitted similar proposals in recent years, citing the need to revive the spirit of the day.

Kim Hee-su khs@ajunews.com