Ex-Minister Stands Firm

On the third day of hearings Monday at the National Assembly's Select Committee on Illegal Loans at Hanvit Bank, Park Jie-won, former culture and tourism minister, flatly denied wielding undue influence on bank officials to secure over-the- limit loans to his relative. The parliamentary hearing is being held to find out whether Mr. Park put pressure on Hanvit Bank officials to provide 46.6 billion won ($37.3 million) between January and August last year to Park Hye-ryong, president of ArcWorld Inc. and a relative of the former minister. Based on Mr. Park's credit at the time, the maximum amount that he was entitled to was 500 million won.

Allegations have also arisen as to whether Minister Park coerced Lee Un-young, former employee of the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund, to provide extra credit guarantees so that Park Hye-ryong could obtain as much as 1.5 billion won in loans.

Although prosecutors cleared Minister Park of all charges in October, the opposi-tion Grand National Party disputed the result of the investigation and demanded a parliamentary hearing. Mr. Park resigned in September to deal with the mount-ing public pressure against his alleged involvement in the illegal loan scheme. During the hearing, opposi-tion lawmakers attempted to portray the event as a corruption scandal orchestrated by Mr. Park. However, the ruling Millennium Democrats argued that it was a case of financial fraud without any hint of political influence in the wrongdoing.

Some 20 witnesses, including Mr. Park, Mr. Lee of the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund and Shin Chang-sup, former manager of the Hanvit Bank branch where the illegal loan was made, were present at the hearing. Asked whether he called Mr. Lee to coerce him to pro-vide over-the-limit credit guarantees to his relative, Mr. Park answered that he never placed phone calls to Mr. Lee.

But Mr. Lee testified that he received two threatening phone calls from Mr. Park in February 1999.

by Seo Seung-wook