When it comes to domestic politics, President Park Geun-hye had a frustrating year in 2015. There being no tradition of compromise and mutual respect among political parties, she has had difficulty throughout the year enlisting cooperation from the main opposition party on her reform agenda.

In her New Year news conference on Jan. 12, Park pledged to turn 2015 into “a year of hope,” as the year, with no nationwide elections scheduled, would offer her administration a golden opportunity to regain economic vitality and pool the nation’s capabilities.

She then pledged to create an economy with solid fundamentals by stepping up structural reform efforts in four areas -- the public sector, labor market, financial system and educational sector.

Park’s economic scorecard, however, is disappointing. The economy grew an estimated 2.7 percent in 2015, falling short of the government’s target of 3.1 percent. The export machine sputtered, amplifying concerns about the falling competitiveness of Korea’s major industries.

Park’s performance in implementing structural reforms is even worse. On Dec. 23, she held a meeting to assess the progress in carrying out reforms. As major achievements for this year, the government cited the reform of the public pension and the Sept. 15 tripartite agreement among labor, management and the government.

But the pension reform was a half-success at best, as the government employees’ pension is on course to return to its present level of deficit in seven years. Regarding labor reforms, no progress has been made in setting the tripartite agreement into law since September.

Yet Park’s poor scorecard on reforms is not entirely her fault. Much of the blame should be put on the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea as the party has persistently refused to cooperate in passing reform bills, including those on labor reform.

The Minjoo Party controls about 40 percent of the 300-seat National Assembly. But the current law on the operation of the parliament has given it de facto veto power on legislative issues.

The law requires approval from three-fifths of lawmakers for the enactment of a disputed bill. This unreasonable voting rule, which was introduced in 2012, has empowered hard-liners in the Minjoo Party, making compromise with the ruling party difficult.

These hard-liners are mostly former student political activists who fought fiercely against the dictatorial governments of the past. They still tend to think and behave like activists, regarding compromise as defeat and perceiving inter-party rivalry as a battle between democracy fighters and antidemocratic forces.

The three-fifths voting rule was introduced to eliminate violence from the National Assembly. It has ended a tradition of using force to block passage of bills, but it has often put the Assembly in a vegetative state.

The rule was intended to respect the rights of the minority. But the minority has repeatedly abused it, making the National Assembly a symbol of inefficiency and a stage for stiff confrontation.

The tougher decision-making rule would have been costly even in a country with a strong tradition of making decisions through compromise. For a country like Korea with a still immature democratic culture, it has proved disastrous. 

Korea cannot afford a repeat of 2015. Next year, the Korean economy is expected to face more unfavorable conditions. To meet the challenges that lie ahead, Korea should not let antagonistic politics hobble economic growth anymore.