Ex-editor takes GNP helm

“Choetler” is what they call him, a combination of his last name, Choe, and that of Adolf Hitler.
The newly elected 65-year-old chairman of the opposition Grand National Party, Choe Byung-yul, earned the name when he was editor of the Chosun Ilbo newspaper in the early 1980s. His reporters, worn down by his drive and stubbornness, thought that was a suitable moniker.
Mr. Choe, personally and politically identified as a conservative, does not mind the name, he says. But he is quick to point out that he is a conservative willing to change. He is expected to lead the opposition Grand National Party with a strong platform that follows his political leanings, which will most likely bring the GNP into sharp confrontation with the Roh Moo-hyun administration.
“I will try to set a new pattern in party relations. Our party will cooperate on what we can, but we will not compromise if the government is in the wrong,” Mr. Choe said yesterday after a party convention that chose him as leader.
The four-term assemblyman’s constituency is Gangnam A district, one of the wealthiest in Seoul. But like many in his generation, Mr. Choe was born to a relatively poor family in the mountain town of Sancheong, South Gyeongsang province. His mother was widowed at 40, and he and his brother struggled to help make ends meet.
Characterized as highly analytical and driven, Mr. Choe entered politics in 1985 as a candidate for the National Assembly. He was tapped by President Roh Tae-woo to serve as Blue House secretary for political affairs and then as head of three different ministries.
Mr. Choe is a graduate of Seoul National University with a degree in public administration. He and his wife, Baek Young-ja, have two sons and a daughter.

by Nam Jung-ho