election Chung’s Economic Policies Center on Inter-Korean Peace, Cooperation
By Lee Hyo-sik
Staff Reporter
Presidential nominee of the liberal United New Democratic Party (UNDP) Chung Dong-young is seeking to create a new growth engine for the economy by establishing a long-lasting peace regime on the Korean Peninsula and promoting inter-Korean business projects.
He envisions establishing a common economic community on the peninsular by 2020 in which people, goods and capital can move freely between the two Koreas.
Chung believes that once peace sets in on the peninsula, more South Korean and multinational firms will invest in the Gaeseong Industrial Complex and other areas throughout North Korea, which will create a win-win situation for the two Koreas.
He has said if elected president, he will also look to redirecting part of the country's defense budget to boost economic and welfare projects.
Chung's economic policies have the motto `` Peace is Money,'' which centers on the idea that easing geopolitical risks associated with the Stalinist state, including its nuclear weapons development program, is imperative to the South's sustainable economic development.
His economic policy visions are in contrast to those of his archrival Lee Myung-bak, the main opposition Grand National Party (GNP) presidential candidate, who has placed a greater emphasis on easing regulations and creating a business-friendly environment to encourage companies and investors to expand investment and create jobs.
Chung has also said he will implement a range of measures to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and increase the number of middle-class households.
``The most urgent task is to restore the country's middle class. Without the majority of financially stable households, it will be difficult for the local economy to advance and compete with rivals on the global stage,'' Chung recently said at a campaign rally.
He plans to increase the number of Koreans belonging to the middle class to 40 million.
Chung also said he will help small companies play an increasingly important role in creating new jobs, developing state-of-the-art technologies and pushing the economy forward. He said if elected, he will create 500,000 new jobs and help the economy expand 6 percent each year.
To help mom-and-pop stores, he will lower credit card transaction fees by 50 percent and lower taxes levied on diesel and other oil products.
Chung also said he will foster the aerospace industry as the country's next growth engine, while criticizing GNP candidate Lee's cross country waterway project.