'DJ at the Turning Point of Democracy': FEER

With the launch of the investigation into alleged draft dodging, and probes into press tax evasion, President Kim Dae Jung's administration is accused of misusing laws to achieve its own political ends, reported the Far Eastern Economic Review. The Review says that foreign companies voice concern on the possibility of politization of legal process in the business world.

The Far Eastern Economic Review, an economic magazine issued in Hong Kong, expressed the concerns above in its March 30 recent edition. The article pointed out that if President Kim wishes to maintain his favorable image as well as the prosperity of the nation, he must ensure the establishment of a law-abiding atmoshphere in all social fields. The following is a summary of the article:

President Kim Dae Jung is seen overseas as a champion of democracy and human rights. But within South Korea his image is somewhat different. Like his precedessors, he is accused by many of using the law for political ends.

When Hong Seok Hyun, owner of The JoongAng Ilbo, South Korea's second-biggest newspaper and a frequent critic of the government, pleaded guilty to tax evasion, the case brought protests from both the Vienna-based International Press Institute (IPI)and the World Association of Newspapers (WAN).

National critics pinpoint tax audits and draft dodging scandals as the two chief weapons people tend to view as politically motivated. One long-term foreign resident in Seoul commented, "You can never be sure if someone is beig prosecuted for criminal reasons."

On March 16, just a month before the general election, the government said 31 man whose fathers are politicians, mostly from the opposition,would be questioned about alleged draft dodging. Trials of two former senior goverment officials, meanwhile, have been postponed until after the elections.

The country's prosecutor-general, Park Soon Young, a presidential appointee, insists his men are impartial and independent. But many legal experts disagree. Says Song Sang Hyun, former dean of the law school at Seoul National University and one of the country's leading jurists: "Public prosecutors as a group are most intelligent and loyal to the leader. It used to be the army generals who protected the leader, but the army's long gone and public prosecutors now play that role."

Foreign businessmen register concern. "The politicization of the legal process is something that should not happen.You need to be able to count on rules and laws and contracts." Suzy Lee, head of the legal committee of Amcham says international standards, such as transparency, were "imposed because of the economic crisis. In practice, she adds, there is a gap between the letter of the law and "what is the actual culture."

JoongAng Ilbo says, it is about time for President Kim, once leader of the opposition, to set up a new democratic principle in politics and the financial sector.