By Kim Yon-se, Kang Hyun-kyung
Staff Reporters
Opposition parties Wednesday agreed to boycott the opening of the new National Assembly, unless the government renegotiates a beef import deal with the United States. The opening was originally scheduled for today.
U.S. Ambassador to Korea Alexander Vershbow, on the other hand, hinted that there has been no request for a renegotiation from the Korean government on the beef deal between Seoul and Washington, a minor opposition party leader said.
However, the ambassador said he is consulting with the U.S. government and cattle industry to find out ``substantial changes,'' Moon told reporters after his meeting with Vershbow in Seoul.
Under the current National Assembly Act, lawmakers should hold the opening session within seven days after taking office. The tenure of 299 lawmakers having won the April 9 elections began on May 30.
Chairman Kang Jae-sup of the governing Grand National Party (GNP) is scheduled to meet the U.S. ambassador today to ask him to send a clear message to his government that renegotiation would help quell the rising protests against the resumption of beef imports.
The GNP proposed that a bipartisan delegation be dispatched to the United States for talks with Congress leaders, government officials and cattle growers to convince them that both sides need to renegotiate the deal as backlash against the accord is out of control.
To draw a consensus on the matter with opposition parties, GNP floor leader Hong Joon-pyo has held out a carrot, announcing that the party would work together with the opposition in passing a parliamentary resolution calling for the renegotiations with the U.S. government of the beef deal signed in April.
Co-chairman Sohn Hak-kyu of the largest opposition United Democratic Party (UDP) accused Ambassador Vershbow for remarks he made Tuesday shortly after he met Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan.
The ambassador told reporters that ``(the beef agreement) is based on international science, that there is no scientific justification to postpone implementation, so we hope the Korean government will implement the agreement as soon as possible.''
Vershbow also said he hopes that ``Koreans will begin to learn more about the science and about the facts of American beef and that this issue can be addressed constructively.''
Sohn said the U.S. ambassador humiliated Koreans with his remarks and President Lee Myung-bak is responsible for what Sohn called the ambassador's ``arrogance and rude'' attitude.
Lawmakers of the Democratic Labor Party (DLP) held a press conference in front of the U.S. Embassy in Seoul and urged Vershbow to make a public apology for his remarks.
Moon said Vershbow told him that U.S. cattle-growers are considering refraining from exporting beef from cattle aged more than 30 months.
``Vershbow also raised the possibility that the beef exporters will be faithful in the labeling of cattle's age,'' Moon said.
It seems that Vershbow believes that the request of renegotiations is up to the Korean government, Moon said.
Mooon said, ``It seems that the government also knows well that the agreed minutes with Washington in April were insolvent. This brings loss of the Lee administration's reputation in front of the people.''
He urged President Lee to make ``sincere'' apology to the nation for his yielding of ``quarantine sovereignty'' to U.S. President George W. Bush and ask the U.S. to hold renegotiations as early as possible.