'Irrational' Rain Rituals Not for Him, Kim Says

President Kim Dae-jung is touring the drought-stricken parts of the country to buoy up people who have been affected by the disaster and to explain his policies on drought relief and labor relations.

"I could hold a ritual and pray for rain," the president said while visiting the ASE Korea plant in Paju, Kyonggi province, on Monday.

"I look up at the sky and hope for rain every day. In the past, Korean kings held rituals praying for rain when drought struck, but I can't because people may think I'm irrational."

Mr. Kim's visit to the semiconductor plant, which won a government award for friendly labor relations, is reportedly aimed at dissuading the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions from going ahead with its much-talked-about general strike on Tuesday.

Government officials said a general strike would only aggravate the farmers' desperate situation.

"Even manufacturers of water pumps have gone on strike," said a senior government official, asking the confederation not to resort to a strike.

"The entire nation is helping farmers overcome the drought," said Park Joon-young, the Blue House spokesman. "Why shouldn't the workers?"

Mr. Kim's trip to Paju followed his visit to the city of Yeoncheon, Kyonggi province on May 24. Yeoncheon has been hit particularly hard by the dry spell.

On Monday morning, the president appeared on a television show promoting aid for farmers.

"Natural disasters can be mitigated by human efforts," he said on the show. "Since all of us are working so hard, I expect it to rain sometime soon."

by Kim Jin-kook