in 2010 , the majority ruled that the NHRC was not entitled to file a competence
dispute because it was a mere statutory agency, and so could not be recognized as
an institution that, having a constitutional basis for its establishment, can be
granted standing for a competence dispute.^19 Three justices dissented and opined
that even those statutory institutions that have no explicit constitutional basis
for their existence can be granted standing for a competence dispute if they are
regarded as constitutional institutions because their existence and authorities, as in
the case of the NHRC, are derived from the Constitution, and if there would be no
way to redress the breach of their competence as such independent bodies.^20
Constitutional status of local governments
Regarding local autonomy, the Korean constitution has only two clauses, which
permit a wide range of legislative discretion in the concrete institutionalization of
the basic composition and structure of local autonomy. For example, the KCC ruled
that Article 117 ( 2 ), providing that the unit of local government shall be prescribed by an
Act, can be construed to allow the legislature to repeal inferior units of local autonomy
in order to consolidate them into a single specialized local autonomous region.
21
Though the Constitution allows a wide legislative discretion, it is not absolute,
and once a local government is created its autonomy in carrying out its autono-
mous powers should be respected. In one remarkable 2009 case regarding the
extent to which the central government can inspect and audit local government’s
autonomous activities under the Local Autonomy Act, the KCC ruled that central
government’s comprehensive audit and inspection can be recognized only on
explicit legislative grounds and that such legislative provision must be narrowly
construed so that the autonomous power of local government cannot be arbitrarily
infringed by central government.^22
Major decisions in relation to human rights
Human dignity and worth
The KCC has come to hold since its establishment that human dignity and worth
under Article 10 of the Constitution can be elaborated in three major specific
rights: ( 1 ) the right to self-determination (or personal autonomy), ( 2 ) the general
right to free activity, and ( 3 ) the right of personality.
(^19) Constitutional Court Decision 2009 Hun-Ra 6 , October 28 , 2010 ,Korean Constitutional
Court Reports, Vol. 22 ,No 2 , Part 2 , 6.
(^20) Constitutional Court Decision 2009 Hun-Ra 6 , October 28 , 2010 ,Korean Constitutional
Court Reports, Vol. 22 ,No 2 , Part 2 , 10 – 11.
(^21) Constitutional Court Decision 2005 Hun-Ma 1190 , April 27 , 2006 ,Korean Constitutional
Court Reports, Vol. 18 ,No 1 , Part 1 , 652.
(^22) Constitutional Court Decision 2006 Hun-Ra 6 , May 28 , 2009 ,Korean Constitutional Court
Reports, Vol. 21 ,No 1 , Part 2 , 418.