’Seoul should soften stance on Pyongyang’

By Park Si-soo

South Korea is at a critical juncture when it comes to its strategy on North Korea.

Conservative President Lee Myung-bak has maintained a hard-lined policy on the nuclear-armed North over the past four years, ending a no-strings-attached aid program assisting the destitute Stalinist regime in 2008. Two deadly attacks against the South by the North Korean military in 2010 solidified the stance.

Yet, the death of “Great Leader” Kim Jong-il in late December — with his untested third son Kim Jong-un in his late 20s anointed as successor — has thrown Seoul into a situation where it faces increasing pressure to soften up.

The government is still reluctant to do so out of fear that a policy shift could backfire, undermining the ruling Grand National Party’s support base, and possibly leading to defeats in the parliamentary and presidential elections this year.

Park Jae-kyu, president of Kyungnam University, is one of the strong advocates for the suggested change.

In an interview with The Korea Times, the former unification minister said the stance shift, if adopted, will help “normalize inter-Korean relations” but added measures should be implemented in a “flexible” manner.

“The regime in North Korea is now desperate to keep its promise to become a strong and prosperous nation in 2012,” Park said, referring to the hunger-stricken country’s ambitious campaign launched by the late Kim to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of his father and North Korea’s founder Kim Il-sung. “If the promise is broken, the regime’s leadership could face a grave challenge.”

The veteran scholar went on to say that Seoul’s resumption of large-scale humanitarian aid to Pyongyang will pave the way for the two Koreas to mend fences and start to build up confidence in each other.

“This is the right time to turn the situation into one favorable for us,” he said.

To ensure smooth improvement of South-North Korean ties, Park said the North should offer an apology for the two deadly incidents — the sinking of the South Korean warship Cheonan on March 26, 2010, and the bombardment of the border island of Yeonpyeong on Nov. 23. Fifty South Koreans — 48 soldiers and two civilians — were killed in the attacks.

“I think Kim Jong-un could offer an apology for the attacks since he was, unlike his father, not directly involved,” Park said. “The apology can be made, for example, in the form of purging those who masterminded the attacks or issuing an apologetic statement.”

With key National Assembly elections only months away, he said, it’s “all but impossible for the government to soften its stance without this.”

He also called on Pyongyang to take responsibility for the death of a South Korean tourist at a mountain resort in the North in July 2008. The tourist was gunned down after straying into a military area near the resort in Mt. Geumgang. With the North offering no apology as of yet, the government has banned visits to the resort by South Koreans, a measure that deprived the cash-strapped regime of a major source of hard currency.

“North Korea’s new leader should make a bold decision to start inter-Korean relations anew,” he underscored. “If North Korea’s famine persists, it could threaten its leadership. But if the regime apologizes for its past misdeeds, it will be given aid that will assist in its stability. Now, everything is up to the North.”