LESSON LightofRestorationPeace,WorldCulture,Heavenly 6 THE OFANDGOVERNMENTTHESEPARATIONPOWERS LESSON OBJECTIVES 1 Understand the meaning of government and separation of powers. 2 Understand what the legislative, executive, and judicial branches are. TERMS TO KNOW • Separation of powers • Legislative, executive, and judicial branches • Executive power
The purpose of separation of powers is to prevent the concentration of power in specific institutions or positions through checks and balances. To this end, most countries have specified the principle of separation of powers in their constitutions. Separation of powers is one of the ways to realize democracy in terms of protecting the freedom and interest of the people by preventing monopoly and abuse of power.
Separation of powers generally means separation of powers into three branches. Accordingly, state power is largely divided into legislative, executive, and judicial powers, with the legislative, executive, and judicial branches having powers, respectively.
2 6. The Government and the Separation of Powers
A government is the institution that governs the country. In general, the government refers to the entire legislative, executive, and judiciary branches within a country. In a narrow sense, the executive branch is also referred to as the government. Separation of powers refers to the division of a state’s power among agencies so that each agency has independent powers and responsibilities.
Legislative Branch
The Meaning of Separation of Powers and The Government
Balance CheckCheck CheckExecutiveBranch LegislativeBranch JudicialBranch Figure 6-1 Checks and balance through separation of
The legislative branch is the state body that makes, amends, and power
6. The Government and the Separation of Powers 3 Figure 6-2 Plenary chamber of the German parliament Figure 6-3 Judges of the International Court of Justice
4 6. The Government and the Separation of Powers repeals law, generally referring to the parliament. The name of the parliament is slightly different from country to country, but there is Parliament, Congress, National Assembly, etc. Members of Parliament are most often elected through national elections, which means they represent the people. Therefore, as representatives of the people, members of the parliament should listen to the voices of the people and conduct legislative activities that reflect the opinions of the people.
Judicial Branch The Judiciary branch is a state body that interprets, judges, and applies laws, while referring to the courts. Courts contribute to resolving legal disputes and maintaining order in the country through trials. Courts must judge all disputes fairly in accordance with the constitution and laws. Therefore, the court must be independent and not subject to external influence or pressure. To this end, the position of judges is guaranteed so that they can judge independently within the courts as well as other national institutions without receiving instructions
Executive Branch Executive means the cabinet, administrative departments, and other organizations composed mainly of the president and/or the prime ministers. The composition of each administrative department differs from country to country, but in general, there are the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Justice, etc. The power to materialize and enforce the laws enacted by the legislature so that it can be applied in reality is called executive power. The executive branch has executive powers, making and implementing various policies within the scope of the constitution and laws. However, it is more desirable in a democratic society to listen to and reflect the opinions of the people rather than to unilaterally state the government’s position when deciding and implementing policies.
6. The Government and the Separation of Powers 5 or orders from higher courts or the head of their courts. Courts are nicknamed the “defenders of democracy” in the sense of realizing the rule of law through fair trials without yielding to any power or pressure.
6 6. The Government and the Separation of Powers Reviewing the Lesson 1 What does government mean? 2 What is the purpose of the separation of powers? 3 What is the legislative branch? 4 What is the executive branch and what is the executive power? 5 What is the Judicial branch? Activities 1 Research and share the organizational structure of the government in your country. 2 Let’s form a group and discuss what problems will arise in society if the principle of separation of powers disappear and some people monopolize the legislative, executive, and judicial powers.
Lesson6. The Government and the Separation of Powers 5th floor 20, Nambusunhwan-ro 347-gil, Seocho-gu, Seoul, South-Korea Tel. +82 02-514-1963 Fax. +82 Thehwpl@hwpl.krhttp://www.hwpl.kr02-514-1961firsteditionon31 July 2022 Published by Heavenly Culture, World Peace, Restoration of Light Copyright 2022 Heavenly Culture, World Peace, Restoration of Light All rights reserved. You must get consent from a copyright owner to use all or parts of the contents of this book. Image Credits Figure 6-1 self-production Figure 6-2 Times, CC BY-SA Seitenansicht.jpghttps://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/28/Deutscher_Bundestag_Plenarsaal_3.0, Figure 6-3 https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/11/ICJ-CJI_hearing_1.jpg
LightofRestorationPeace,WorldCulture,Heavenly