New PM nominated
Justice Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn speaks at a news conference at the Gwacheon Government Complex, Gyeonggi Province, Thursday, after President Park Geun-hye named him as new prime minister. He said he will do his best to stimulate the economy and stabilize people’s livelihoods. The nomination came about 20 days after former Prime Minister Lee Wan-koo resigned amid mounting pressure over a bribery allegation. / Yonhap
Law-and-order ex-prosecutor led government effort to abolish pro-NK party
By Do Je-hae
President Park Geun-hye nominated Justice Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn as prime minister, Thursday, in order to fill the post vacated by Lee Wan-koo, who stepped down nearly one month ago over bribery allegations.
Hwang, 58, a former prosecutor, led recent government efforts to legally disband the pro-North Korean Unified Progressive Party (UPP).
The opposition party immediately showed its disapproval of the nomination.
"His past moves show a backpedalling on democracy,” New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD) floor leader Rep. Lee Jong-kul said. “The nomination ignores the wishes of the opposition and the people. We are deeply concerned about how to respond to the signal of coercive rule.”
The party submitted resolutions for his dismissal twice during Hwang’s tenure as justice minister since March 2013.
Civic groups, including the People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy and the Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice, also opposed the nomination.
Hwang has invited some controversy, particularly for his crackdown on pro-North Korea activities.
He played a central role in abolishing the UPP for allegedly supporting North Korean ideology. A Constitutional Court ruling disbanded the party in December 2014.
Before the ruling, Hwang pleaded for the party to be banned, saying, "The doctrine of the UPP is designed to overthrow the current administration and establish a North Korean style regime.”
Hwang is an expert on the National Security Law enacted in 1948 to fight communism.
Such hard-line inclinations have prompted criticism from the opposition bloc.
The biggest impediment to his official appointment will be the National Assembly confirmation hearing.
Prior to confirming Hwang as justice minister, the opposition gave him a hard time during a hearing over draft dodging and being paid an excessive salary during his time as a lawyer before joining the ministry. These issues are likely to re-emerge during the forthcoming confirmation hearing.
Led by Government Policy Coordination Minister Choo Kyung-ho, the Prime Minister’s Office has launched a team to prepare for the confirmation hearing.
Cheong Wae Dae sees Hwang as the timely pick to push ahead with the President’s political reforms.
“Since the onset of the Park administration, Minister Hwang has served as a justice minister and has a keen understanding of Park's philosophy on state affairs,” Kim Sung-woo, presidential senior secretary for public relations, said in a briefing.
“We determined that he is the right person to lead the anti-corruption drive and build a new Korea through political reform.”
The President’s anti-corruption drive is stumbling, particularly after her former prime minister and several other key aides were implicated in a bribery scandal.
In an unprecedented move, a sitting prime minister resigned after only two months on the job ahead of an investigation by the prosecution.
An extended vacancy in the post has triggered concerns over proper management of state affairs.
“I feel a heavy sense of responsibility because my nomination for prime minister comes at a very difficult time for our nation,” Hwang told reporters.
"My first priority will be to revitalize the economy and bring more stability to people's livelihoods.”
The ruling party lauded Park's choice. The opposition camp slammed it as another case of Cheong Wa Dae's personnel failures characterized by unilateral decision-making.
The main opposition leader Rep. Moon Jae-in said he was “let down” by the nomination.
"The nomination reflects Park's indifference to the people's call to name someone who symbolizes unity,” the NPAD chairman told reporters.
The opposition has hit out at Hwang for influencing the prosecutors' probe into the Sung Woan-jong bribery scandal implicating former Prime Minister Lee and Park’s aides.
He led several provincial prosecutors' offices before becoming justice minister in March 2013, after suffering some setbacks in promotion during the 10-year liberal administrations of Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun.
Hwang is the nation’s first justice minister to be nominated for prime minister.