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January 25, 2008
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Kim’s signature Sunshine Policy helped him to convince Pyongyang to hold the first inter-Korean summit in 2000, one of the biggest accomplishments of his administration. Kim won the 2000 Nobel Peace Prize for his North Korea policy. “Will Korea be doomed if the Unification Ministry is not abolished?” Kim asked during a meeting with United New Democratic Party Chairman Sohn Hak-kyu yesterday. The Unification Ministry is a symbol of passion for reunification, he said. The fate of the ministry has provoked the most controversy among the sweeping changes in government structure sought by President-elect Lee Myung-bak’s transition team ahead of his inauguration next month. The transition panel says the ministry’s functions should be transferred to other ministries, including the Foreign Ministry and the Finance Ministry. The proposal has raised fears that North Korean policy may be derailed and that even dealing with the North through the Foreign Ministry may be unconstitutional. Some political observers think Lee intends to use the threat to shut down the ministry as a negotiating tool in the National Assembly session in February when his supporters will try to pass the reform package into law. Lee has denied the speculation. But the backlash is real. Some 140 local experts on North Korea, including respected university professors of North Korean studies, yesterday released a joint statement to denounce the decision. “The incoming administration needs to overhaul the Unification Ministry’s functions rather than become obsessed with breaking from the past administration’s North Korea policies,” said the statement. Kim, meanwhile, urged UNDP lawmakers to be skeptical when the transition plan is presented. The debate “will be an important opportunity for the UNDP to showcase the meaning and value of an opposition party,” Kim said. Lee’s Grand National Party denounced the former president’s comments. “We understand that it may be natural for former President Kim to be attached to the Unification Ministry, which he helped establish,” said GNP spokeswoman Na Kyung-won. “But we want former President Kim to stop making illogical criticism and to just watch how the new administration handles unification issues even without the Unification Ministry.” By Jung Ha-won Staff Reporter [hawon@joongang.co.kr] |
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