Both candidates vow to curb NIS

Lee Hoi-chang, presidential candidate of the Grand National Party, said yesterday that he would close down the National Intelligence Service if he were elected to the Blue House.

Mr. Lee wants to replace it with a new intelligence agency, if the service does not end its "illegal inspection on the politicians." The new agency would be politically neutral and competitive, he said. Mr. Lee's party last week accused the intelligence agency of illegally wiretapping a wide spectrum of political figures.

Some observers are already counting the remaining days of the National Intelligence Service, as the other major contender, Roh Moo-hyun of the Millennium Democratic Party, said Sunday that the agency should be reorganized into an overseas intelligence bureau.

Mr. Lee said he would not tolerate illegal wiretapping of any kind by government agencies. He demanded that President Kim Dae-jung and the MDP apologize, punish the agency officers and launch a National Assembly and prosecutors probe into the wiretapping accusations.

Mr. Lee said he would place the agency under the scrutiny of the Board of Audit and Inspection and strengthen the authority of the National Assembly's Science, Technology, Information and Tele-communications Committee.

Mr. Roh said in Busan that he would forbid the agency to conduct domestic operations. He would have it focus on overseas intelligence, to the benefit of the state. "The central intelligence agency is causing trouble," he said.

Observers forecast that the intelligence service would undergo sweeping changes no mater which candidate be-comes president. Both candidates now want to limit or disband the agency's domestic intelligence operation and strengthen overseas intelligence to prevent terrorist attacks and collect information on North Korea.

Shin Kuhn, chief of the intelligence service, has denied the GNP charges of wiretapping and offered to submit to National Assembly investigation.

Meanwhile, the major parties exchanged mud over the wiretapping allegations. "We will fight to the end and make public other transcripts, unless the president apologizes and promises not to repeat such mistakes and to punish the associated officials," said Kim Young-iel, the party's secretary general. The MDP said that the transcripts purporting to be recorded telephone conversations were supplied by the GNP.

by Nam Jeong-ho, Lee Sang-il