http://chunlingo.com/board/board.php?board=TKBulletin allfor.kr ko-KR http://chunlingo.com/board/board.php?board=TKBulletin&command=body&no=6 researcherPoliticians’ prudence needed to overcome security crisisOne of the key mandates and missions of the opposition is to watch over the government in power, criticize it and offer alternatives if it does something wrong. But the Korean opposition often sticks to opposition for the sake of opposition without offering options. The opposition is holding on to such a habit even in a time of a grave security crisis. The main opposition The Minjoo Party of Korea said it is opposed to the government’s decision to pull South Korean businesses out of the Gaeseong industrial park in North Korea in retribution for its nuclear test and long-range missile launch. It says the decision will only exacerbate tensions on the peninsula by completely cutting off inter-Korean exchanges and it will not offer the ultimate solution to the current situation. It did not offer any ideas of how to cope with the growing security threat from the North. The Minjoo Party and the People’s Party also made it clear that they oppose the deployment of the U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense missile system, again without providing convincing alternatives to counter the North’s nuclear and missile threats. As an alternative means, the People’s Party did call for the establishment of an indigenous missile defense system -- the Korea Air and Missile Defense -- at an early date. But its target year is 2023 and how much sooner could it be put in place? We may get it one or two years sooner, but then how will we be able to defend ourselves if the North develops a nuclear-tipped missile one year or two from now? In the U.S., the Senate approved a bill to sanction North Korea by a 96-0 vote. It may be too big a hope to see a similar bipartisan unity here in dealing with the North, yet issues surrounding its nuclear and missile capabilities should never be a subject of political exploitation. We raise this concern all the more because the general election is only about two months away.Source: http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20160212000996]]> 0 researcher Sat, 13 Feb 2016 21:36:48 +0900 http://chunlingo.com/board/board.php?board=TKBulletin&command=body&no=5 researcherChina should realize world’s resolve on N.K. threatChina becomes a focus of international attention whenever North Korea escalates tensions by nuclear tests or long-range missile launches.It is because the international community looks to China, the sole socialist ally and economic patron of North Korea, for reining in the world’s most notorious rogue state.But one knows what China has done in the past 10 years -- since North Korea’s first nuclear test in 2006. It failed to -- or did not -- pressure or persuade the leaders in Pyongyang to abandon their nuclear and missile development programs. Instead, what the leaders in Beijing did was only stress calmness and dialogue. They also tried to water down the resolutions of the U.N. Security Council -- of which it is one of the five permanent members -- and became a reluctant signatory. It, of course, was not faithful in following up on the resolutions. By all signs, Chinese leaders are following the same pattern after the North’s latest nuclear test and the long-range missile launch. President Xi Jinping kept President Park Geun-hye waiting for about 30 days before agreeing to have a telephone conversation about the North’s fourth nuclear test Jan. 6. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who hurried to Beijing to ask Xi and other Chinese leaders to slap North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, went back to Washington empty-handed. What both Park and Kerry heard from Chinese leaders was the same as what their predecessors did during the past 10 years -- the North Korean issues should be settled through dialogue, not sanctions. All in all, China remains as defiant of international pressure as ever. But this time, Chinese leaders will be facing a different world. The international community -- led by the U.N., South Korea, U.S. and Japan -- is working faster, and more importantly more resolutely, to punish the North Koreans. The U.S. Senate has already passed a bill imposing sanctions on those who contribute to the North‘s nuclear and missile development, including importing and exporting related materials. The toughest-ever U.S. bill also calls for sanctions on those who engage in the North’s cyberattacks, import of luxury goods, money laundering, manufacture of counterfeit goods, narcotics trafficking and trade in minerals and precious metals. In Tokyo, the Japanese government has announced the imposition of unilateral sanctions on North Korea. The measures are highlighted by a ban on North Korean ships and those of third countries that visited the North and on North Korean nationals and their sympathizers. Then came the Seoul government’s decision to pull South Korean businesses out of the Gaeseong industrial park, which has been a symbol of inter-Korean economic cooperation and a buffer zone ....]]> 0 researcher Sat, 13 Feb 2016 21:33:43 +0900 http://chunlingo.com/board/board.php?board=TKBulletin&command=body&no=4 researcherFollowing a cabinet reshuffle this week, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has something many countries do not have ― a minister for happiness. This new post is noteworthy because it is a visible sign that the UAE government seriously takes its role to develop and promote policies for people's happiness. The UAE's refreshing example resonates particularly with many Koreans who feel their happiness is sitting on the government's back-burner.As demonstrated by the pervasive use of the term "Hell Joseon," many young Koreans are desperately unhappy. The nation's suicide rate is one of the highest among OECD countries. More young people are reluctant to get married and raise a family because of unstable job conditions. Unfortunately, more people are losing hope for a future in this country. So it provided little consolation for Koreans when President Park Geun-hye said that her New Year wish was the people's happiness, because her administration so far has done little for it.The UAE provides a timely reference for Korean policymakers. In a cabinet reshuffle Wednesday, the UAE appointed Ohoud al-Roumi as "minister of state for happiness." She will be responsible for conducting programs and indices for people's happiness and drive government policy to create social good and satisfaction in connection with all ministries. The new post was the highlight of the country's largest structural change in the history of its government.There is surely a possibility that some will criticize it as a budgetary waste to create a government ministry centered on a concept as relative and personal as happiness. But Korea should at least learn the spirit of the UAE government to place the people's happiness at the core of its national agenda. We hope that Park will make use of the rest of her term to act on her previous slogan of opening an "era of people's happiness." This will require more determination and innovative thinking from policymakers as well as cooperation among relevant ministries in employment, health care, education and family issues. jhdo@ktimes.com,Source: http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/opinon/2016/02/202_197848.html]]> 0 researcher Sat, 13 Feb 2016 21:27:49 +0900 http://chunlingo.com/board/board.php?board=TKBulletin&command=body&no=3 researcherGov't should seek people's understanding on closure After President Park Geun-hye's decision to suspend operations at the inter-Korean factory park with North Korea, there are three crucial steps her administration should undertake. It should be the first priority of the government to respond sincerely to the anger and dismay shared by the South Koreans who had operated businesses in the Gaeseong Industrial Complex. Seoul estimates the shutdown will incur more than 1 trillion won ($835 million) in losses.The concern the South Korean supervisors feel over their livelihoods is understandable. The owners of about 120 South Korean firms, mostly in their 40s and 50s, were forced hastily to move out of the factory town without enough time to pack up their finished goods. Many of them believe that the industrial zone has virtually no chance of reopening soon, at least during the Park presidency.With the shutdown, they face the risk of breaking contracts with thousands of buyers and suppliers. The head of the association representing the Korean businessmen at the Gaeseong joint complex said it may consider legal action against the government for the financial damage its decision has incurred. They say the government has violated an inter-Korean agreement made in 2013 to continue operations regardless of the political climate.The government needs to do its utmost to provide compensation that will be satisfactory to the owners. It must provide aid packages that will prevent the factory owners from going bankrupt and facilitate their search for an alternative site to continue their businesses or support job training.Second, the nation needs to be on full alert for additional retaliatory measures and possible military provocations from Pyongyang. North Korea has blatantly denied its responsibility in the closure and instead has mounted verbal attacks on President Park, castigating her for "driving the Korean Peninsula to the brink of war." Pyongyang has already hit back harshly at the closure by freezing assets and equipment left behind, expelling all South Koreans and returning the industrial zone to the control of the military.It also cut two key communication hotlines with Seoul, preventing any further official discussion of the situation at the complex. With the increased cross-border tensions, Cheong Wa Dae and the intelligence and military authorities need to be fully prepared to deal with more reckless activities from Pyongyang. It is highly possible that the North may conduct additional provocations before the annual Korea-U.S. military drill and the U.S. Security Council sanctions for its nuclear test last month.Third, the government needs to seek the people's understanding on the inevitability of Park's decision. Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo gave....]]> 0 researcher Sat, 13 Feb 2016 21:22:16 +0900 http://chunlingo.com/board/board.php?board=TKBulletin&command=body&no=2 researcherThe closure of the Kaesong Industrial Complex, which has been jointly run by the two Koreas since 2004 and is the last remaining economic cooperation project between them, to punish North Korea for a nuclear test in January and a missile launch last weekend is understandable for the sake of national security and the safety of South Korean citizens. Follow-up measures must be designed carefully to minimize losses for Korean businesses in the industrial park. Authorities should place top priority on compensating for business losses from the closure and prevent the losses from spilling over into the broader economy.However, the government on Friday released a set of disappointing relief measures comprising emergency aid and rollover of debt more suitable for companies in trouble - not companies that were forced out of business for the national cause.Enraged manufacturers in the park are demanding restitution for the shutdown of their operations, not aid. Their anger was heightened when the government put all the blame on Pyongyang. The Kaesong park members have been patient even when operations were temporarily suspended in 2013. They restrained themselves from criticizing Seoul when it was waging a war of words with Pyongyang, which obviously threatened their businesses.But this is different. The factory closures were abruptly announced by Seoul. Because exits were restricted to one vehicle and one person per day following the announcement, they had to leave behind finished products, raw materials and other assets. It is irresponsible to simply pin the blame on Pyongyang when Seoul gave the Korean businesses no choice. The companies may threaten a suit against the government, but none so far have won any legal battle involving the Kaesong Industrial Complex. From a legal perspective, companies cannot win.Pyongyang was brutal in seizing all the assets in the complex. But it should not be the companies that endure all the losses. The closure was made for national security. Compensation should also be viewed from an emergency perspective. The government should provide for the losses and later settle them with Pyongyang. This must not create conflict between the government and the companies. JoongAng Ilbo, Feb. 13, Page 26Source: http://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/article/Article.aspx?aid=3015022]]> 0 researcher Sat, 13 Feb 2016 21:14:50 +0900 http://chunlingo.com/board/board.php?board=TKBulletin&command=body&no=1 researcher Asian stock markets suffered another round of rout after the Lunar New Year holiday. The Korean composite stock price index on Thursday fell nearly 3 percent, the steepest fall in nearly four years. The technology-laden Kosdaq also plunged nearly 5 percent. Hong Kong’s benchmark index tumbled 5 percent, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 index retreated 7 percent over the last two trading days. The European and U.S. bourses were also weak throughout the week. Stocks in Japan, Hong Kong and Germany lost more than 20 percent so far this year. The free fall does not end in the equity market. Commodity prices, as well as other economic data, are all crumbling. Crude prices fell to the mid-20-dollar range and the Baltic Dry index, the international freight rate, tumbled below 300 for the first time ever. The foreign exchange market is undergoing a roller coaster ride. The yen that plunged to 121.39 against the dollar on Jan. 29, when the central bank pushed the base rate into negative territory, shot up to 114.21 on Tuesday. The strong dollar suddenly reversed direction, and the yuan has been moving wildly following the actions of authorities in Beijing. The won-dollar band moved by 7.9 won a day last month, 1.3 won more than last year’s average. The four key rates that influence the economy - interest, foreign exchange, stock and oil - are fluctuating heavily. Worse, they do not show signs of easing or moving at a predictable speed and direction anytime soon. The government needs to re-examine its economic policy in this volatile environment. The government has set economic growth targets of 3.1 percent and inflation of 2 percent for this year backed by estimates that oil prices will stay above $40 per barrel and the Chinese economy will keep growing at the mid-6-percent level. From what’s going on now, all the projections could be wrong. Authorities must come up with contingency plans to consider the worst scenario. They also must come up with measures to fend off short-term speculative money that has been jumping from commodity to currency exchanges. JoongAng Ilbo, Feb. 12, Page 30 Source: http://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/article/Article.aspx?aid=3015021]]> 0 researcher Sat, 13 Feb 2016 21:06:24 +0900