Who do these leftist politicians serve, the people of South Korea or China?:
First-term Rep. Kim Young-ho of the Minjoo Party of Korea answers questions at Gimpo International Airport Monday departing on a three-day visit to Beijing. [CHO MOON-GYU]President Park Geun-hye Monday lashed out at political rivals’ opposition to the deployment of a U.S.-made missile defense system, saying issues of national security should be bipartisan.
The president’s sharpest criticism was aimed at six first-term Minjoo Party lawmakers who embarked on a three-day visit to Beijing on Monday, describing them as siding with Beijing on the missile system deployment, which it vociferously opposes.
At a regular senior secretariat meeting at the Blue House, Park noted it was the basic responsibility of politicians “to work in a bipartisan manner and avoid creating internal divisions when it comes to issues of national security.” [Joong Ang Ilbo]
You can read more at the link, but this is just another example of how the Korean left is trying to keep the THAAD issue alive to use as a political weapon during next year’s Presidential race.
The expansion of the anti-corruption law is clearly targeted at the unions and civic groups that are largely left leaning. With that said will these anti-corruption laws just make these groups instead focus on campaign contributions like what happens in the US to influence politicians?:
South Korea’s National Assembly in Seoul (Yonhap)
Lawmakers belonging to the ruling and opposition parties are generally in favor of expanding the anti-graft law to encompass the country’s labor unions and civic groups, a poll showed Sunday.
The survey carried out on lawmakers sitting on parliament’s National Policy Committee showed 10 supporting the expansion versus five who were opposed, with four saying they did not have a view on the matter.
The poll carried out by Yonhap News Agency shows awareness among lawmakers that the law can be revised down the line to make it more comprehensive and better reflect public calls to root out graft.
The Kim Young-ran anti-graft law, named after the former Anti-corruption and Civil Rights Commission chief, aims to tighten loopholes in existing anti-corruption rules under which public officials cannot be punished for accepting expensive gifts and services unless there is evidence of reciprocity.
The law passed by the National Assembly in March 2015 and set to go into effect on Sept. 28 subjects public officials, journalists and private school faculty to a maximum penalty of three years in prison or a fine of five times the amount they accept in money or valuables if they exceed 1 million won (US$896) in one lump sum or 3 million won in total annually, regardless of whether it is in exchange for favors or related to their work. The regulations make it illegal to accept meals exceeding 30,000 won, presents in excess of 50,000 won, and money for congratulations and condolences of over 100,000 won, and bars people in these occupations from from making improper solicitations.
“Although it may seem excessive by some because of the considerable influence civic groups and labor unions exert on society, it only makes sense that they are covered by the law,” a ruling Saenuri Party lawmaker said.
He pointed out that it makes no sense to include journalists and schoolteachers who are not public servants, while leaving out unionists and civic group members. [Yonhap]
It will be interesting to see what the reaction to this is going to be. It is difficult to lobby publicly against an anti-corruption law that is trying to end bribery.
Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo, a former head of the minor opposition People’s Party, speaks during a debate on the deployment of a sophisticated U.S. missile defense system in South Korea at the National Assembly Building in Seoul on July 14, 2016. Ahn, a potential candidate for the next presidential election, again voiced his opposition to the deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery here. (Yonhap)
It looks like if Ban Ki-moon wants the job as President of South Korea, it is his to lose:
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon pays his respects to seniors at the Hahoe Folk Village in Andong, North Gyeongsang, on Sunday. [JOINT PRESS COPRS]UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon led all potential presidential contenders in a poll after he made the strongest hint yet of a possible run in next year’s election.
In a poll conducted by the JoongAng Ilbo on Friday and Saturday of 1,000 eligible voters nationwide, respondents were asked who they would like to see as Korea’s next president. Ban topped the list with 28.4 percent, followed by Moon Jae-in of the Minjoo Party of Korea with 16.2 percent. Ahn Cheol-soo, co-leader of the People’s Party, came in third with 11.9 percent.
The poll was seen as a testament to Ban’s far-reaching appeal to voters and a favorable image formed by his 10-year leadership of the United Nations.
Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, who expressed an objection to Ban running, citing a UN resolution that calls on UN chiefs to refrain from taking government jobs, came in fourth with 7.2 percent, trailed by former Saenuri Chairman Kim Moo-sung with 4.2 percent.
In a three-way race with Moon and Ahn, both from the liberal bloc, Ban was far ahead of the two, with 45.7 percent of support, while Moon received 24.6 percent and Ahn had 20.1 percent. Of all respondents, 9.7 percent said they didn’t have a favorite. [Joong Ang Ilbo]
You can read the rest at the link.
I have always liked Ban Ki-moon because when he was the foreign minister of South Korea he was the voice of sanity during the administration of Roh Moo-hyun. Even during the fervent anti-American years Ban Ki-moon would still visit US military installations in Korea to thank US servicemembers for their service. With that all said he is running the UN about as I expected. Ban is a consensus builder and not a change agent. He can run things low key and competently within an established framework which right now it appears this is what Korean voters want for their President.
It is always tough to run against candidates that promise free stuff to the public without the responsibility that goes along with paying for it:
President Park Geun-hye warned against the dangers of populist campaign pledges Friday, stressing that maintaining fiscal soundness is a key factor that the government should take into account in setting its 2017 budget proposal.
“Laws containing populist ideas will burden not only the current generation but the next,” Park said chairing the national fiscal strategy meeting at the presidential office. She added excessive spending on welfare could have an impact on the country’s long-term fiscal health.
The chief executive also advocated special administrative rules like the “pay-go” system. The system makes clear that any additional outlays must be offset by spending cuts or revenue increases.
“The problem of maintaining long-term fiscal soundness is something that is agreed upon by the people,” the president pointed out.
At the meeting that sets government guidelines on spending, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance said it will maintain its expansionary fiscal policy mode for the next five years to prop up the economy. It, however, said every effort is going to be made to cut unnecessary outlays.
The ministry moreover has been moving to streamline the public sector to get rid of overlapping institutions. This can save money and lead to a more efficient fiscal spending structure.
The chief executive’s latest remarks apparently came after the political parties spearheaded different welfare pledges in the lead-up to the April 13 parliamentary elections.
Kim Chong-in, interim chairman of the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea, stressed the importance of “productive welfare,” saying that the expanded welfare policy will eventually induce growth in related industries, such as health and medical services. [Yonhap]
It is now official that President Park Geun-hye’s Saenuri Party has lost their majority in the Korean parliament after recent elections:
Saenuri Party leaders — Reps. Kim Moo-sung (C), Won Yoo-chul (L) and Kim Tae-ho — attend a ceremony marking the disbandment of the party’s election campaign committee at the National Assembly on April 14, 2016 (Yonhap).
“We will make sure to get rid of our arrogance and self-righteousness by gravely reflecting upon the warning issued by the people through this election,” read a group text message a defeated Saenuri Party candidate sent to his constituents on Thursday.
Such humble words were echoed by a number of his colleagues, as the ruling party was reeling from the crushing defeat that stripped it of the status of majority and No.1 parliamentary party.
Indeed, protracting economic doldrums, the party’s factional fighting, and the Park Geun-hye government’s inflexibility and lack of interaction with the legislature, ordinary citizens and other members of society are blamed for the party’s landslide loss in Wednesday’s general election, observers said. [Korea Herald]
The big winner in the parliamentary election was former presidential candidate Ahn Cheol-soo:
Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo, co-chair of the minority People’s Party, was seen as the biggest winner in the elections. His party won 38 seats, far more than the 20-seat requirement to form a parliamentary negotiating bloc.
The party pledged to become a “genuine representative” to realize people’s aspirations for a change in politics.
“We will pay back with the kind of politics that changes politics, the government and the lives of the people,” he said during a meeting with his party officials. [Yonhap]
Ahn’s parliamentary electoral success may end up being a good jumping board for him to launch another presidential election campaign, especially if the economy continues to be flat in Korea. Ahn could use his businessman background much like Donald Trump does in the US to burnish his credentials to be the next President.
From a US perspective what I think people should look at is whether the election results will cause any softening in President Park’s current hardline policy on North Korea and the deployment of the THAAD missile defense system to Korea.
If the ruling Saenuri political party loses its majority it will be interesting to see if that has any affect on President Park’s current tough stance on North Korea as well as the deployment of the THAAD missile defense system to the peninsula:
South Korea’s ruling Saenuri Party is slightly ahead of its main opposition rival in Wednesday’s tightly contested parliamentary elections, though it may not win a parliamentary majority, an exit poll said.
An exit poll by South Korea’s public broadcaster KBS predicted that the ruling Saenuri Party could win between 121-143 while the main opposition Minjoo Party could secure between 101-123 seats out of the total 300 seats up for grabs.
KBS conducted the joint exit poll with two other broadcasters MBC and SBS, though they have different predictions on the results of the elections as they use different tools.
The poll released by MBC showed the ruling party winning between 118-136 seats against the Minjoo Party’s 107-128 seats.
An SBS poll forecast the ruling party winning between 123-147 seats and the Minjoo Party securing 97-120 seats.
The minor opposition People’s Party is projected to win between 31-43 seats while independent candidates are expected to secure between 8-20 seats, according to the poll released by the three broadcasters. [Yonhap]
