By Park Si-soo
The main opposition Democratic United Party (DUP) is attempting to push anti-American sentiment to help increase its chances to win in the April general elections.
In its latest decision-making meeting, the DUP highlighted the alleged negative impacts of the free trade agreement between South Korea and the United States (KORUS FTA) and said it would take action to prevent these from happening. The DUP expects its position to increase the party’s popularity.
Some party members even threatened to demand President Lee Myung-bak nullify the accord, which could deal a devastating blow to the Seoul-Washington alliance. President Lee has the final say when it comes to the nullification of international treaties.
“If we secure a majority in the April elections, we will urge the government to reconsider the deal from scratch,” said Rep. Lee Yong-sup, head of DUP’s policy planning council.
In response, a U.S. Embassy official in Seoul was quoted as saying “unbelievable” in an interview. Some Korean diplomats criticized the opposition party for promoting anti-American sentiment to help solidify its support base, particularly among liberal-minded citizens.
The last anti-U.S. movement that plagued Lee and his party dates back to 2008, when thousands of people took to the streets for nearly three months to oppose the government’s decision to resume imports of U.S. beef. A similar public outcry erupted in 2002 after two schoolgirls were accidentally crushed to death by a U.S. armored vehicle.
The KORUS FTA was endorsed by both sides last year and is now awaiting effectuation later this month.
The bilateral trade pact was the fodder of intense ideological dispute in South Korea last year. Public opinion over the deal is still divided. While open-market proponents claim the pact will offer a much needed boost to the Korean economy, opponents argue it will damage Seoul’s economic sovereignty and lead to an irrevocable market transformation friendly to the rich.
DUP Chairwoman Han Myeong-sook initiated the anti-U.S. campaign.
“The DUP has asked many times to stop preparations for the implementation of the KORUS FTA, but we have had no answer (from the government),” Han said during the Supreme Council meeting Friday. “In acceptance of a request from an ad-hoc committee working to nullify the pact, we plan to send letters directly to U.S. President Barrack Obama, senators and congressmen, and ask them to suspend FTA’s effectuation and reconsider the deal from scratch.”
Han said the letters will be sent to the U.S. this week. Although they carry no binding force, they will help show the U.S. politicians the country’s largest opposition party’s position against the treaty, a DUP official said. DUP spokesman Shin Kyung-min echoed the view, saying the party will “keep intensifying its opposition to the FTA.”
Rep. Park Jie-won, a Supreme Council member, went one step further; he said the pact “must” be nullified since its implementation is destined to damage small companies, mom-and-pop stores and low-income people.
Rep. Park Young-sun, another Supreme Council member, echoed the view, warning that the nullification will be included in the DUP’s pledges for the April elections and December presidential poll.
Analysts cautiously say the DUP is apparently capitalizing on anti-U.S. sentiment to defeat the ruling Saenuri Party in the April elections, largely seen as a litmus test gauging public sentiment ahead of the December presidential poll.
“It’s not an unheard-of position for the DUP, meaning the remarks were not a clear sign that the opposition party is seeking anti-American sentiment,” said Shin Yul, a professor of political science at Seoul’s Myongji University.
“But things in politics are always changeable depending on how the situation unfolds.”