My experience as a Director’s Intern at the National Assembly in South Korea gave me a unique opportunity to see the inter-workings of a foreign government and the nature of East Asian democracy and political culture firsthand. Functional and long lasting democracy adapts to the surrounding culture and circumstances. In Korea, democracy has taken on a distinctive form over the last 50 years.

The Republic of Korea has emerged from the devastation of the Korean War a relatively strong and vibrant democracy. Breaking away from the authoritarian politics that dominated the country since liberation from Japan in 1945, fair elections occur on a regular basis and there is a stable transition of power between opposition leaders and parties. A healthy press is unafraid to publicly challenge the government and public street demonstrations are common place, if not excessively abundant.

A widely publicized feature of Korean democracy is the aggressive opposition tactics by minority political parties - such as large brawls among representatives in the assembly chamber played across YouTube. Working in the National Assembly building I witnessed these protests, blockades of rooms and resulting security precautions first hand. While such activities are certainly evidence of Korea’s democratic immaturity, it also is a testament to the vitality and continuing progression of Korean democracy. Many Koreans have a sincere passion for the well being of the republic and the political system has proven capable of handling dissent without collapse.

I was assigned to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Trade and Unification which has jurisdiction over two of the most significant bodies in the Korean government, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and the Ministry of Unification - which both are similar in function to the US State Department. The Committee staff researches and examines proposed legislation which is then evaluated and debated by representatives in the Committee. They then decide on whether to allow the legislation to be presented to the plenary for a general vote.

Recently, the mandate expired for a South Korean peace keeping operation in Lebanon and our staff examined the issue before it reached the Committee for a vote on its extension. My assignment was to research the Constitutionality in the United States of the President authorizing the deployment of US troops abroad without authorization from Congress and to document the opposing arguments to UN Security Council Resolution 1701 which authorizes a UN peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon.

–Andrew Badger, '12