Moon, Ahn target separate groups in bid to become single opposition candidate

The two presidential candidates from the liberal camp tried to appeal to different electoral groups Monday in what appeared to be a move to increase their chances of becoming the sole opposition candidate in December's election.

Moon Jae-in of the main opposition Democratic United Party (DUP) and the computer software mogul-turned-independent politician Ahn Cheol-soo are only into the second week of their campaigns, after the DUP nominated Moon as its standard-bearer on Sept. 16 and Ahn announced his presidential bid last Wednesday.

Even before the two bids became official, however, speculation was rife the liberals would unify their candidacies in order to stand a better chance against the ruling Saenuri Party candidate Park Geun-hye in the Dec. 19 polls, who was long a front-runner in surveys until recently.

Both Moon and Ahn saw their approval ratings jump last week, thanks in part to the so-called "convention effect" that comes after a candidate announces his or her presidential bid, and also due to public disappointment over Park's reluctance to come to terms with abuses committed under her late father Park Chung-hee's 18-year rule.

On Monday, Moon paid a visit to the widow of late liberal President Kim Dae-jung in what appeared to be a move to win the votes of Kim's loyalists in South Jeolla Province, the DUP's traditional stronghold.

The 59-year-old candidate, a former human rights lawyer-turned-politician, was born and raised in South Gyeongsang Province and served as chief of staff to Kim's successor, the late liberal President Roh Moo-hyun.

Regional rivalry runs deep between the two neighboring provinces.

Kim's widow, Lee Hee-ho, welcomed Moon to the Kim Dae-jung Presidential Library and Museum in Seoul and stressed the importance of winning back power from the conservative ruling party, DUP officials said.

"I think you will definitely win the election," DUP officials quoted the 90-year-old Lee as telling Moon during the meeting. "Our country is a democratic country, so we must support democracy, and there is a need to create a people-friendly economy so that many may live well."

Moon replied by saying he will carry on goals of the late President Kim and try to unify the opposition candidacies around the party.

"We need to strengthen our camp while differentiating ourselves from (Ahn)," said Rep. Woo Sang-ho, head of communications in Moon's campaign team. "Candidate Moon hasn't had many opportunities to meet with the people of the Honam area (North and South Jeolla Provinces), so this week, we plan to focus on that area."

On the likelihood of a single candidate representing the opposition, Moon said in a meeting with citizens later in the day that he was confident of an amicable outcome, although he did not elaborate on details.

"I trust (Ahn) will not go his own way and make a decision that will result in a victory for the Saenuri Party's candidate," he said.

Polls have shown that a three-way race will favor Park over Moon and Ahn, who will split the opposition vote.

Moon also said that he is actually grateful to Ahn for challenging Park's longtime front-runner status and creating a new political force out of political moderates and those who had been apathetic to politics.

"The support for Ahn has given an incredible stimulus to the political establishment and will greatly contribute to the development of South Korean politics," he said.

Ahn, the 50-year-old founder of South Korea's largest anti-virus software firm, AhnLab, meanwhile, has vowed to achieve national integration across ideological and generational divides. In an apparent demonstration of this pledge, the former medical doctor last week visited the graves of both liberal and conservative presidents of the past. This was different from Moon, who paid his respects only to Kim and war veterans.

Ahn has also explained his vision for a so-called "two-wheeled bicycle" that enables welfare and economic growth to go hand in hand through innovation.

As part of that drive, the candidate visited a research center for unmanned vehicles at Seoul's Kookmin University earlier in the day, where he encouraged young researchers and stressed the economic potential of the technology involved in building the cars.

The software entrepreneur has a strong following among young South Koreans and is often cited as a role model for creativity and entrepreneurship.

"None of the positions within our campaign team include the word 'strategy' in their titles," said Park Sun-sook, who is in charge of Ahn's campaign. "We're not doing things strategically but trying to do politics with sincerity based on the belief that we can go forward only if both wheels turn." (Yonhap)