Kim-Lee to Cooperate in Overcoming Crisis

President Kim Dae Jung and the opposition leader Lee Hoi Chang finally met on November 10 ending the lengthy standoff between the two and agreed that mutual cooperation was necessary in order to overcome the economic crisis. The two leaders held the meeting at Chong Wa Dae (the Blue House) and issued a joint statement.
The leaders agreed that the ruling and opposition parties would form an organization equally composed of the two political powers and open hearings on December 8 to determine the reasons and responsibility for the economic crisis which began late last year.
The meeting ended the hostile confrontations the two parties have engaged in for the last two months. The animosity between the two surrounds numerous controvertial issues such as the 'Panmunjom Shooting Plot', state security's use of illegal electronic eavesdropping, and the use of torture by the intelligence agency.
The two leaders also agreed that they would make a consolidated effort to operate the National Assembly productively especially surrounding the budget bill and reform laws.
Both parties' representatives continued to negotiate throughout the night yesterday, and in the early morning light they finally reached a consensus on the meeting's agenda and a 12;30 start time at Chong Wa Dae, the President's official residence and office.
Regarding the economic hearing, Park Jie Won, a Chong Wa Dae spokesman said yesterday, 'The ruling National Congress for New Politics (NCNP) wanted to stipulate that the opening day of the 'economic hearings' will be December 3 whereas the opposition Grand National Party (GNP) argued that the hearings should be 'after the budget bill passes the National Assembly'.'