MDP Brass Turn to Social Issues

Members of the Supreme Council of the ruling Millennium Democratic Party put aside their presidential ambitions Monday to tackle social issues directly related to the public's well-being.

The nine members of the council called on the party and President Kim Dae-jung to pay attention to public opinion and concentrate on completing the implementation of reform programs rather than launching new projects.

The council's actions are stirring speculation in political circles that the president may retreat from his pronounced policy of ending his tenure with a strong government and a strong ruling coalition.

"It is time to wrap up the projects and policies undertaken by the administration," Representative Hahn Hwa-kap said. "It is time to use the word 'change' rather than 'reform.'"

"Rather than starting new programs, we should concentrate on giving implemented programs a good finish," Representative Kim Keun-tae said.

"The public is becoming wary as the reform programs drag on," Kim Joong-kwon, the party's chairman, said.

The party's senior leadership pinpointed the three areas of reform that they say triggered public discontent: Medical reform, the current public education crisis and another downturn in the nation's economy.

Members of the council also pointed to government indecision on the Saemangeum land reclamation project and the sale of Daewoo Motor as other reasons for public distrust of the administration.

Members of the Supreme Council asked Chairman Kim Joong-kwon if the president was being kept abreast of changes in public opinion regarding the party and his administration.

"The president is well aware of public opinion," Mr. Kim said.

"I also delivered the message of several party members who are calling for Lee Moo-young to step down over the violent police crackdown at Daewoo's Bupyeong factory. He listened, but did not say anything," the party chairman said. He was referring to Mr. Lee, commissioner-general of the National Police Agency, and his handling of the April 10 clash.

The council, which includes the party's leading presidential hopefuls, made no mention of early selection of the party's candidate for the 2002 presidential elections. Council members looking to win the nomination are Kim Joong-kwon, Hahn Hwa-kap, Rhee In-je and Kim Keun-tae.

by Lee Yang-soo