Jung Chung-rae urges voters to cast ballots, saying 'direction of S. Korea is set by the people, not a handful of politicians'

Jung Chung-rae, overall standing campaign committee chairman of the Democratic Party of Korea, urged voters to go to the polls on Wednesday, the day of the June 3 local elections, saying the country should "let democracy bloom more fully through voter participation."

Speaking at the final meeting of the party's central election campaign committee at the National Assembly, Jung said, "Elections are the flower of democracy."

He said South Korea's democracy "was built on the efforts of citizens who fought for and defended the right to cast a single vote." He added that people had taken to the streets to reclaim ballots stolen by the fraudulent March 15 election, and had won direct presidential elections through the June 1987 pro-democracy uprising against military dictatorship.

"The vote each of us casts today is a right preserved through the blood, sweat, sacrifice and dedication of countless citizens," he added.

Jung said, "As our history proves, the ballot is stronger than the bullet," and went on to say, "Power does not come from the barrel of a gun. Power comes from the ballot box."

He also said that "it is the many citizens, not a handful of politicians, who determine the direction South Korea will take," and urged the public not to surrender their sovereignty. "Please vote to elect capable and loyal public servants who will faithfully carry out your will," he said.