South Korean Politics and Elections

Roh Commutes Sentences of 6 Death-Row Inmates

Korea Times, December 31, 2007

By Kim Yon-se
Staff Reporter

President Roh Moo-hyun granted a special pardon for 75 people, including 21 businessmen and 30 politicians and public servents, Monday.

Of them, six inmates on death row had their sentences commuted to life imprisonment under Roh's final special amnesty. Roh's five-year term ends on Feb. 25.

Among those pardoned include now-defunct Daewoo Group Chairman Kim Woo-choong; Halla Engineering and Construction Chairman Chung Mong-won; former Democratic Party leader Hahn Hwa-kap; and Park Jie-won, presidential chief of staff for former President Kim Dae-jung.

Also included is Choi Do-sool, a former financial aide to Roh, who was convicted for receiving 90 billion won ($75 million) from businesses in 2003 after Roh won the presidential election.

Roh's special leniency for the six inmates came as South Korea marks a 10-year moratorium on the execution of inmates. No execution has been carried out since Dec. 30, 1997, when 23 death-row inmates were hanged.

According to the Justice Ministry, 58 inmates are currently awaiting execution.

Others on the list of special pardon included two former chiefs of the nation top spy agency, Shin Kun and Lim Dong-won, both convicted of ordering eavesdropping on political and business leaders during former President Kim Dae-jung's government.

Former Daewoo Chairman Kim was sentenced to eight-and-a-half-years on charges of embezzlement and accounting fraud last November but was temporarily released from prison the following month for health reasons.

Daewoo, once Korea's second largest industrial group, collapsed in July 1999 due to accumulated debts of $80 billion and was placed under a government-led restructuring program.

Last summer, five business lobby groups, including the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Federation of Korean Industries, and the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business, asked for amnesty for corporate figures on the occasion of Liberation Day which falls on Aug. 15.

They submitted a joint petition containing 54 names, officially requesting that business executives convicted of financial crimes be cleared of their criminal tags.

But Hanwha Chairman Kim Seung-youn, who was given a suspended 18-month prison term for attacking off-duty bar workers, was among the high-profilers who were not pardoned.

kys@koreatimes.co.kr

40% Want Stronger Relations With US

Korea Times, December 31, 2007

By Kim Sue-young
Staff Reporter

More than 40 percent of the people said South Korea should strengthen their alliance with the United States in 2008, a poll said Monday.

According to the survey conducted by the Hankook Ilbo, a sister paper of The Korea Times, 43.7 percent called for stronger ties citing increasing distrust between the two allies, while 27.5 percent said the status quo should be maintained.

Of 1,000 respondents, 23.9 percent said a more independent stance is required for the country.

Sunshine Policy

About 60 percent upheld the ``sunshine policy'' engaging reclusive North Korea.

Some 13.3 percent support the policy unconditionally.

Nearly 63 percent said Seoul should keep sending aid and propelling cooperative projects under the condition of complete denuclearization of Pyongyang.

About 20.4 percent insisted the South keep the North in check based on the strict reciprocity principle because threats from the communist state still exist.

The remaining 3.5 percent were undecided.

The poll also showed that about 70 percent of the people said it is necessary to completely or partially revise the agreement made during the second inter-Korean summit in Pyongyang in early October.

President Roh Moo-hyun and his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong-il signed a joint declaration calling for peace and denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula.

Unconditional support of the accord stood at only 18.9 percent.

Size of Government

As for the government of President-elect Lee Myung-bak, more than half of the people said a smaller government should appear with fewer public servants and slimmed-down organization.

But 44.2 percent said the next government should more focus on providing the public with better services rather than cutting the number of public officials.

Presidential Term

The Constitutional reform on presidency has been a hot potato since Roh rose up the necessity on Jan. 11.

He suggested revising the current five-year, single-term presidency into four-year, double-term one.

With a mere 1.3 percentage-point gap, 39.4 percent said they supported the current presidential system, while 38.1 percent preferred Constitutional reform.

The survey found that 43.2 percent said the ``three-no'' education policy should be abolished while 33.6 percent insisted the policy remain intact.

The policy refers to a measure that bans colleges from ranking high schools, administering their own tests in the admission and receiving donations in exchange for admission.

Along with the negative opinion, President-elect Lee also plans to abolish the first two and allow universities to have authority to select new students on their own.

ksy@koreatimes.co.kr

Assembly Passes 256.1 Tril. Won Budget for 2008

Korea Times, December 28, 2007

By Kim Sue-young
Staff Reporter

The National Assembly Friday approved a budget bill for next year scaled at 256.1 trillion won ($272 billion).

The figure represents a cut of 1.2 trillion won from the government's proposed amount of 257.3 trillion won, up 7.9 percent from this year.

Funds for education and welfare were reduced by 165 billion won and 227 billion won, respectively.

Under the inter-party compromise, expenditures in social overhead capital increased by 360 billion won.
The main opposition Grand National Party (GNP) initially called for a cut of more than 5 trillion won including a larger reduction in inter-Korean cooperation funds.

But after its candidate Lee Myung-bak won the presidential election on Dec. 19, the party changed its stance and agreed to cut government spending by a smaller margin.

Instead, the GNP demanded that an additional budget be set for investment in developing new energy and supporting small- and medium-sized companies at the last minute during an ad hoc Assembly committee session, which are mostly included in Lee's campaign pledges.

Due to opposition from the pro-government United New Democratic Party, the funds were set similar to this year's level, parliamentary sources said.

ksy@koreatimes.co.kr

Troop Stay in Iraq Extended

Korea Times, December 28, 2007

By Kim Sue-young
Staff Reporter

The controversial motion to extend the deployment of South Korean troops in Iraq was approved by the National Assembly, Friday.

The bill for the yearlong extension was passed with a vote of 146 for, 104 against and six abstentions.

Some legislators of the pro-government United New Democratic Party (UNDP) voted for the motion, in defiance of party leaders' decision to cast ballots of ``strong opposition.''

As a result, the party leadership will likely face threats to its authority as well as internal unity amid a feud triggered by its defeat in the presidential election.

Under the motion, the Zaytun unit which means ``olive'' in Arabic, can stay in the war-torn Middle East country until Dec. 31, 2008. The number of troops has been halved to 650.

The UNDP has contended that the government should keep its promise to withdraw the troops in the Middle East country this month.

However, four UNDP lawmakers voted for the motion at an Assembly committee meeting Thursday. Only two lawmakers objected to it, while the remaining one UNDP legislator abstained.

In the Assembly session, about 40 to 50 UNDP lawmakers are presumed to have voted for the motion.

The main opposition Grand National Party (GNP) which has 128 seats in the 299-member unicameral legislature and the Democratic Party (DP) with six seats have supported the motion, saying that the extension is essential to strengthen ties with the United States.

Since 2004, the troops have carried out humanitarian and reconstruction operations in the northern Iraqi city of Irbil as the second largest coalition partner of the U.S.

ksy@koreatimes.co.kr

Labor Party Leaders to Resign En Masse

Korea Times, December 26, 2007

By Kim Sue-young
Staff Reporter

Leaders of the minor opposition Democratic Labor Party (DLP) will resign en masse to take responsibility for the party's poor performance in the Dec. 19 presidential election, a party spokesman said Wednesday.

The party will launch an emergency committee Saturday. Either Rep. Sim Sang-jeung or Roh Hoe-chan who failed to win the party's ticket to run in the election will likely lead the committee, party sources said.

DLP candidate Kwon Young-ghil placed fifth with 3 percent of the total eligible votes, lower than the 3.9 percent that he garnered in the 2002 election.

The figure is lower than that of Moon Kook-hyun of the Creative Korea Party (CKP) who entered politics just a few months before the election. Moon, the former CEO of Yuhan-Kimberly, got 5.8 percent.

``To strengthen matters and organize the emergency committee efficiently, party leaders including Supreme Council members have to resign,'' party Chairman Moon Sung-hyun said. Few party officials expressed objections.

Party members said that Kwon, a three-term lawmaker who unsuccessfully ran in the presidential race for the third consecutive time in a row, should step back from the party leadership.

Sim and Roh are favored to become head of the emergency committee, party sources said.

However, it remains to be seen whether they will accept the position because both lawmakers will likely seek reelection in the National Assembly elections slated for April 9, they said.

The Democratic Party (DP), whose candidate Rhee In-je placed sixth in the presidential race, is also struggling with efforts toward internal innovation.

Lee Myung-bak of the conservative opposition Grand National Party (GNP) won the election by a landslide with 48.7 percent of the vote.

ksy@koreatimes.co.kr

Probe on President-Elect to Start

Korea Times, December 26, 2007

By Kim Yon-se
Staff Reporter

The Cabinet endorsed a bill Wednesday to empower an independent prosecutor to launch a second investigation into President-elect Lee Myung-bak's alleged involvement in a financial scam.

The approval was made in a Cabinet meeting at Cheong Wa Dae chaired by President Roh Moo-hyun. This is the first time in history that a Korean President-elect is to be the subject of a criminal investigation.

The presidential office will ask the head of the Korean Bar Association to recommend three candidates for the special prosecutor position. Roh will pick one of the three.

The independent counsel will mainly investigate whether the former CEO of Hyundai Engineering and Construction orchestrated the BBK Asset Management-related stock price manipulation with his former business partner Kim Kyung-joon.

The investigation will also focus on whether he engaged in illegal real estate transactions, and other irregularities, including the false declaration of his personal assets and money laundering.

Under the bill passed at the National Assembly two days before Lee's election, a special prosecutor is entitled to investigate the case for up to 40 days, until several days before the inauguration of the next administration on Feb. 25, with 105 investigators and assistants.

If cleared of the allegations, Lee will become the next head of state. If he is indicted and found guilty, he may lose the President-elect status and Korea would hold another presidential election this year.

State prosecutors have cleared him of all suspicion but, according to opinion polls, more than half of the Korean people say they believe he is guilty. But Lee won by a landslide, scoring 48 percent of all votes cast.

A video clip showed Lee giving a lecture at the Kwangwoon University in Seoul, during which he states that he founded BBK Asset Management, the firm at the center of the financial scam allegations.

In the video clip, Lee said, ``I established an investment advisory company, BBK in January this year (2000).''

The Grand National Party (GNP), to which Lee belongs, said they believe Lee will ultimately prove his innocence again.

Other parties such as the United New Democratic Party (UNDP) and the Democratic Labor Party (DLP) welcomed the endorsement.

Of 299 National Assemblymen, 160 lawmakers of the pro-government UNDP, the DLP and the Democratic Party (DP) voted for the bill. All 128 GNP legislators abstained from the vote.

President-elect Lee has warned that if he is cleared of all suspicions, they (UNDP leaders) should be held accountable for defaming him. The state prosecutor said in a statement that their investigation result clearing Lee of all fraud allegations will only be repeated again. However, the UNDP claim that Lee's ``wrongdoings'' will be made public.

kys@koreatimes.co.kr

Lee Seeks to Halt GNP Power Struggle

Korea Times, December 24, 2007

By Kang Hyun-kyung
Staff Reporter

President-elect Lee Myung-bak said Monday that it is not time for his Grand National Party to talk about the selection of its candidates to run in the National Assembly elections slated for April 9.

In an attempt to prevent possible internal feuding over the issue, Lee said, ``Now, we have to launch the transition team. If we talk about the elections, it would disappoint the people.''

Lee made the remarks in a meeting with party Chairman Kang Jae-sup.

He said he was embarrassed by media headlines saying a feud was brewing inside the GNP over power struggles regarding candidate selection for the Assembly elections.

He asked party leaders to keep a low-key attitude and not to cause an unnecessary backlash from the public.

Regarding the elections, the question of who will have the real power to select the party's candidates to run has become a critical issue after Lee won the Dec. 19 presidential election.

Rep. Park Hee-tae, a close confidant of Lee, sparked the controversy late last week.

Park said that it was time to rethink the party platform, which clarified the power division between the president from the party and the party chairperson.

The GNP platform sets a limited role for the president in the selection of candidates, and the party chairperson oversees the selection.

Therefore the limited role inside the party system will prevent Lee from influencing the party candidate selection in the next elections, party sources said.

Lee's influence inside the party could meet opposition from former Party Chairwoman Park Geun-hye who has considerable clout, they said.

Park has not commented on Lee's confidante's remarks yet.

``It is not desirable for the GNP leaders to feud over the Assembly elections to come next year. We have tons of work to do now,'' Lee said.

Experts said the President-elect's warning is based on the calculation that the brewing feud could trigger a backlash from the public, which will have a negative impact on the parliamentary elections.

hkang@koreatimes.co.kr

Liberal Party Starts to Seek New Image

Korea Times, December 24, 2007

By Kim Sue-young
Staff Reporter

In the wake of its crushing defeat in the Dec. 19 presidential election, the liberal United New Democratic Party (UNDP) is making plans to revamp its leadership, policy lines and organization.

The party appointed advisor Kim Ho-jin to head an in-house innovation committee during its Supreme Council meeting Monday.

``I will do my utmost to map out measures to regain the trust and love from the public so as to rescue the party from the mire,'' Kim said after accepting the post.

He promised to present measures for the National Assembly elections scheduled for April 9 as well as for the party itself as soon as possible.

Secretary-General Chung Dong-chea will lead a preparatory committee for the Feb. 3 national convention to select new party leaders.

During the meeting, senior party officials called for prompt action.

``We cannot waste time any longer. We need to motivate our members to join the revamp movement,'' Rep. Chung Sye-kyun, former party chairman, said.

Amid the internal efforts, party members clashed over who was responsible for the defeat in the presidential poll.

Some lawmakers including Rep. Kim Han-gill who are distancing themselves from President Roh Moo-hyun blamed Roh loyalists, insisting that those people should step aside in the next administration.

They attributed the failure to President Roh and the pro-Roh group whose poor performance caused voters look elsewhere.

They also blamed the defeat on incompetent senior lawmakers who also served as Cabinet members under the incumbent government.

Roh loyalists rebutted the attack, saying it is not appropriate to argue who was at fault.

``The presidential candidate is the one who should take responsibility for the defeat. But before we quarrel about it, we should learn how to win back our supporters,'' Rep. Lee Hwa-young said.

Pro-Roh lawmakers and former Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan plan to launch a committee to evaluate the election result and discuss their future plans, party sources said.

UNDP legislators also differed over how to select the next leaders.

While anti-Roh factions claimed that the next party chairman should be elected through a party primary, the other groups insisted on picking the party chairman through mutual consent without any direct voting.

ksy@koreatimes.co.kr

Business, Political Leaders to Be Pardoned This Week

Korea Times, December 23, 2007

President Roh Moo-hyun plans to grant a special pardon to about a hundred convicted business leaders, politicians and others before the end of this year, presidential spokesman Cheon Ho-seon said Sunday.

Those who could be included in the beneficiaries of Roh's last special pardon are Daewoo Group founder Kim Woo-choong; Halla Engineering & Construction Chairman Chung Mong-won; and Choi Won-suk, former chairman of the now-defunct Dong-Ah Group who was convicted of corruption charges, Cheong Wa Dae sources said. Roh's five-year term ends in February.

In November last year, Kim was convicted of embezzlement, accounting fraud and other charges related to the collapse of Daewoo in 1999.

Others beneficiaries of the special amnesty will include Hahn Hwa-gap, former chairman of the minor opposition Democratic Party who was convicted of corruption charges, according to the sources.

Park Jie-won, who served as chief of staff for former President Kim Dae-jung, may be able to resume political activity, they said. Park was pardoned last February.

Cheon said the final decision on Roh's special pardon is due this week, but could be delayed until early next week depending on the schedule of the Cabinet.

jckim@koreatimes.co.kr

Young Voters Shift to Center-Right

Korea Times, Decembe 21, 2008

By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter

The 2007 presidential election betrayed the tradition that young voters are in more favor of progressive ideas than conservative ones, as they valued bread-and-butter issues more this time than ideological and ethical standards, political experts said.

In the Dec. 19 ballot, over 40 percent of those in their 20s and 30s funneled their votes to businessman-turned-politician Lee Myung-bak, who campaigned on his economic credentials, helping him win a landslide victory over liberal-minded Chung Dong-young whose pledges focused on North Korean affairs, ideology and ethical issues.

Young Voters Become Pragmatic

According to final figures released by the National Election Commission, Lee won 42.5 percent of support from those in their 20s, while Chung had 20.7 percent from the same bracket.

Lee won 40.4 percent of support from 30-something voters compared to Chung with 28.3 percent.

The results marked a stark contrast to those of the 2002 election when liberal candidate Roh Moo-hyun won some 60 percent of support from those in their 20s and 30s against Lee Hoi-chang who earned some 30 percent from the brackets.

Kim Ho-ki, professor of sociology at Yonsei University in Seoul, said the liberal camp failed to read the trends among young people.

``Most of those in their 20s and 30s now witnessed the financial crisis 10 years ago when they were children,'' Kim said in a televised debate Thursday. ``Unfortunately, they themselves are experiencing similar economic difficulties now, such as unemployment and housing issues. That means they cannot help voting for the candidate who can satisfy their needs of livelihood.''

Judgement on Roh government

Professor Kim Hyung-joon of Myungji University in Seoul said Lee Myung-bak's landslide victory was largely attributable to the South Korean public's frustration of incompetent Roh Moo-hyun government and ruling forces, which had been indulged in ideological and political disputes.

``The outcome of the election reflected the public's punishment on the Roh government,'' Kim said. ``Most people, even those who supported Roh in 2002, were disappointed by Roh's failed management of state affairs.''

Professor Kang Won-taek of Soongsil University in Seoul said, ``There are many people voting for Lee Myung-bak just because they don't like Roh. People felt the need for change because the Roh government failed to come up with solutions on economic problems."

Conservative Prevails

Arguably, conservatives dominated this election. Though Lee Myung-bak is often considered a reform-minded politician, most of his policies are based on a conservative platform.

In Wednesday polls, Lee won 48.7 percent of the votes, beating out Chung Dong-young with 26.1 percent. It was the biggest margin of victory in the 20-year history of democratic elections in South Korea
Right-wing candidate Lee Hoi-chang had 15. 1 percent. That means more than 63 percent of voters supported conservative candidates.

``People appeared to desperately feel the need for change, being tired of 10 years of liberal rule. And that kind of sentiment was reflected in the election,'' said Professor Kim Min-jeon of Kyunghee University in Seoul.

Regionalism Lingers

Lee Myung-bak won in 13 out of 16 cities and provinces in the country. But he only received single-digit support in southwest regions, which experts call a sign of lingering regionalism.

The southwestern Jeolla provinces and Gwangju have long been considered the home turf of liberal politicians led by former President Kim Dae-jung.

Votes Shift in Seoul

Traditionally, voters in the Seoul area tend to split between conservative and liberal forces, and liberal votes often dominated the elections. But not this time around.

More than half of Seoul and Gyeonggi voters supported Lee. He won 53.2 percent in Seoul and 51.8 percent in Gyeonggi Province. In west Incheon, Lee won 49.4 percent of the votes.

Experts said Lee's visible achievements during his service as Seoul mayor including the restoration of the Cheonggye stream and reform of bus services in Seoul were crucial for the shift.

Lowest Voter Turnout

The voter turnout recorded a record-low of 63.1 percent. The rate is far below the 70.8 percent turnout of the 2002 election and the 80.7 percent of the 1997 election.

Poll experts attributed the lowest-ever turnout to the early daunting lead of the President-elect and growing public apathy toward politics and negative campaigns during the presidential race.

gallantjung@koreatimes.co.kr