USKI was long-pending problem here

By Kim Bo-eun

The alleged lack of accounting transparency at the Washington D.C.-based U.S.-Korea Institute (USKI), affiliated with the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, was a long-held issue among South Korean lawmakers, according to National Assembly records.

Earlier, the government announced it would cut funding for the institute, citing “lax reporting of accounts and a lack of transparency in selecting visiting scholars and interns.”

However, USKI Chairman Robert Galluci referred to the decision as “an intervention on academic freedom.” Galluci implied Cheong Wa Dae's possible involvement in the pressure to dismiss the USKI's director Jae H. Ku, in interviews with several domestic media outlets, and stated he would send a letter to President Moon Jae-in to protest against the move.

Ku has headed the Washington D.C.-based think tank since 2007. The USKI was established in 2006.

National Assembly records show that a budget was allocated for the think tank this year, on the condition of a reorganization of the institution and improvement on its transparency by March, and a submission of a report on the measures taken.

These were claims made by Cheong Wa Dae in its refutation of the allegations.

Whether the government would continue to subsidize the research institute would be decided based on its management, which the Assembly would determine in its inspection in September, records show.

The issue of the think tank's transparency was first brought up in November 2014, by then-lawmaker Kim Ki-sik. He stated that 2 billion won in subsidies were “simply provided every year” to USKI, in a meeting reviewing the government's budget allocation.

Last August, Lee Hack-young of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, took issue with the institute.

“Because it receives 2.1 billion won in subsidies, I was going to look into its expenditures, but only got two pages (from the USKI),” he said during a national policy committee meeting.

“I think there is also a problem with the internal structure (of the USKI). The director has served for over 10 years,” he said. “One cannot know how many times it holds board meetings and have to suspect that management is monopolized by the director. If improvements are not made in these areas, it would probably not be able to receive government subsidy at this year's review.”

Kim Sung-won of the opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP) said, “I have never seen just a one-page report being submitted by an organization that receives a 2.1 billion won in subsidy. How can its budget be drawn up based on this?”

Rep. Hwang Ju-hong said, “As far as I remember, an influential figure of the ruling party at the time was a graduate of this school. Subsidies were allocated to the think-tank as one-year projects, but have continued as yearly projects,” he said. “It now needs strict supervision.”

An Assembly committee then discussed the issue of adding a precondition for allocating government funds for the think tank in a subcommittee meeting finalizing the government's budget in November.

“I mentioned earlier that if (the USKI) does not come up with measures to fix the situation, it cannot receive subsidies and will ask the institution to submit a report outlining the measures,” Rep. Lee said at the time.

The committee concluded that the report would be a condition for receiving government funds.

However, Rep. Yun Jae-ok of the LKP stated the party had not agreed on the precondition.