The World : S. Koreans Vote on a New Constitution

South Koreans voted today on a new constitution that would allow popular election of the next president for the first time in 16 years, a concession made by the government after violent protests last spring. It is the first time a bipartisan constitution has been presented to South Korean voters. The nation’s 13,634 polls opened at 7 a.m. to accommodate 25.6 million voters, and 120,000 police were on the alert. Meanwhile, an aide reported that opposition leader Kim Dae Jung will break with his Reunification Democratic Party and form a new party to make an independent run for the presidency.