Park’s move endorsed

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33083, 25 November 1972, Page 9

Park’s move endorsed

(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter—Copyright) SEOUL, Nov. 24. South Korea has marked an epoch by overwhelmingly approving a new constitution, proposed by President Chungnee Park, to deviate from Western-style democracies and endorse peaceful unification with the North. Near complete returns gave an unprecented 92.3 per cent of valid votes for the constitutional amendment after 91.1 per cent of nearly 15.7 million eligible voters went to a national referendum under martial law yesterday. The voter tum-out was lowest at 80.6 per ce-t in Seoul, but the capital city which had always been antiPark in national polls, went to him 82.5 per cent this time. The voters approved a tough ruling structure spelled out in the new constitution to give a drastic boost to Presidential powers and weaken the National Assembly. The American-style popular presidential election under the former constitution is gone. The President is now to be elected to a six-year term by a new supreme constitutional body — national conference for unification. A President can serve as many terms as elected by the national conference.