President Chen Shui-bian on February 26 met with Yun Young-chul, former president of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Korea. President Chen expressed his warmest welcome and gratitude to Mr. Yun on behalf of the ROC (Taiwan) government and people.
President Chen said that Mr. Yun was among the highest scorers in the Republic of Korea's first judiciary exam, and that he has served as a judge as well as presiding justice and president in district courts and high court. He has also served as a Supreme Court justice and a licensed lawyer. In addition, he was the president of the Constitutional Court for six years, which is equivalent to being Chairman of the Justices of the Constitutional Court under the Judicial Yuan on Taiwan or the head of a constitutional court in Western countries. President Chen cited Mr. Yun's comprehensive background in constitutional law and called him and others like him defenders of the constitution.
President Chen said that what is important and alive about a constitution is its spirit. He noted that constitutional amendment or creating a new constitution is far from an easy job to achieve, nor can it be done with satisfactory effects in a short period of time. However, constitutional interpretation enables lifeless constitutional articles to come back to life and become relevant to the times and the needs of the people.
President Chen furthermore pointed out that he himself is trained in the law. On February 1, 1990, he became a member of the Legislative Yuan. He said that he felt such honor and pride to be able to walk into the legislature. During his term, he actively pursued constitutional interpretations and was able to successfully achieve interpretations on various issues. He said that what left the deepest impression on him and had the most far-reaching impact was when he sought Constitutional Interpretation 261 in 1990. On June 21 of that year, the Council of Grand Justices made a ruling that led to the total election of a new legislature. The legislature now in office is the nation's sixth, indicating the long-term impact of the ruling. He said that 60 years ago, constitutional law was instituted in the ROC and the following year members of the First Parliament were elected. However, it is regrettable that before long, mainland China fell to the communists and the ROC government moved to Taiwan. This development enabled the members of the First Parliament to remain in office in perpetuity. At the time, the Council of Grand Justices ruled that if a Second Parliament could not be elected, those in the First Parliament would remain in office. As a result, members of the First Parliament held their posts for over 40 years, which was unprecedented worldwide. In response, President Chen said he sought a constitutional interpretation in order to resolve the issue of re-election of the legislature, hoping that the Council of Grand Justices would overturn the original interpretation.
President Chen said that when he was a member of the Legislative Yuan, he pushed for at least seven constitutional interpretations. He said that even though he is now the leader of the nation, he still has sought to use his position as president to seek constitutional interpretations on issues such as presidential immunity from criminal cases while in office and privileges when national secrets are involved.
President Chen noted that Mr. Yun's visit to Taiwan is in part to promote the establishment of a judicial cooperation association between the two countries. He said he supports such a move and welcomes the creation of such an organization. The president said he hopes that cooperation and interaction between the two countries in judicial matters will be mutually beneficial to both nations.
Accompanying Mr. Yun to the Presidential Building to meet with President Chen was Vice Justice Minister Lee Chin-yung. Also in attendance was Deputy Secretary-General of the Presidential Office, Chen Chi-mai.