President Predicted 4 Percent of National Economy Growth

President Kim Dae Jung arrived in the capital of North Chungchong Province, Chongju, on April 30 to attend a public administration reform meeting. The president stated, 'Business is rapidly improving, so the four-percent growth of our national economy is well within reach this year.'
President Kim emphasized, 'According to the rules of a free market economy, smooth lay-offs, to a certain degree, are needed to revive corporations and make them sounder financial entities. Even if 10 to 20 percent of a companies' workforce loose their jobs, firms should subsequently recover and create jobs while not loosing out on foreign capital.'
Kim added, 'Agriculture is not a declining industry but a promising exporting field. We can improve the income of farmers by taking advantage of the world's biggest importing country of agricultural products, Japan, our neighbor.'
In relation to the expansion of services at Chongju's International Airport, whose facilities are currently not fully used, Kim said, 'We will make an effort to expand to Japan and East Asia, as well as domestic areas. However the province itself should strive for creating tourism.'
The president commented on the interview with Le Monde, held the day before, 'The French press asked me what kind of president I wanted to be memorialized as. My answer was as the president who oversaw the realizing of democracy, free market economy and social welfare; as the president responsible for making Korea a first-class country by developing the intellectual information, cultural, and tourism industries; as the president who guided the achievement of a sustained peace on the Korean Peninsula; and as a president who contributed to human rights and peace in the world.'
Jooan Kang : jooan@joongang.co.kr