Thu, Apr 15, 2004 page5

• South Korean parties make last appeal

  `DARK FORCES' This year's parliamentary elections have been overwhelmed by the president's impeachment, and neither major party is predicted to obtain a majority

  • REUTERS
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  South Korean parties made a final appeal to voters yesterday ahead of a parliamentary election high on emotion over President Roh Moo-hyun's impeachment but low on policy debate.

  The electoral watchdog is projecting a high turnout in today's poll for the 299-seat National Assembly in which Roh's impeachment has overshadowed issues such as North Korea's nuclear threat, South Korean troops in Iraq and youth unemployment.

  The National Election Commission said a recent survey indicated that 88.7 percent of voters "intended" to vote. Of these, 77.2 percent said they would "definitely" cast ballots.

  The turnout, especially among youth who have historically stayed away from polls, is especially critical for the pro-Roh Uri Party, whose strategy has been to capitalize on dissatisfaction at the president's impeachment by the opposition-controlled parliament.

  The opposition impeached Roh on March 12 for a minor election law violation, incompetence and alleged involvement in corruption scandals. Roh, whose approval ratings were low, gained sympathy from a public who thought the opposition had overplayed its hand.

  Roh has been sidelined and his fate is now in the hands of the Constitutional Court.

  The race among 14 parties is mostly a showdown between the center-left Uri Party and the conservative Grand National Party (GNP).

  Neither party is now projected to win a majority in the single-chamber assembly. Both have drawn fire from South Korean media for expending more energy on attacking each other than elaborating policy for Asia's fourth-largest economy.

  The Uri Party says that keeping parliament in the hands of the Grand National Party will thwart Roh's reform plans.

  "My heart breaks at the mere thought of a situation in which dark forces again grab parliament, monopolize government and lord it over the people," Uri parliamentary leader Kim Keun-tae said.

  The Grand Nationals say they offer stability and a check on Roh and a radical agenda soft on militant labor and North Korea.

  "Only a healthy, rational opposition that curbs and corrects the errors of the president and ruling party can put the country to right," Grand National Party leader Park Geun-hye said.

  Party heavyweights spent the final day canvassing the populous Seoul metropolis, which has 97 of the 299 seats.

  Foreign investors are watching the election because they fear instability in a major US ally on the front line with North Korea, a hostile communist state whose pursuit of nuclear weapons has kept the region on the brink of crisis for two years.

  North Korea, barely a factor in the poll race, called on voters to deal a heavy defeat to the Grand National Party, which takes a hard line against Pyongyang.

  An editorial in the North's ruling party daily said "the major task facing the South Korean people in the upcoming election is to overthrow the anti-popular and treacherous GNP."

  South Korean financial players say their eyes are glued on the global economy and corporate earnings and the fate of US President George W. Bush in November's election.

  "Whoever wins a majority in parliament, it will have little impact on economic policies," said Lee Jae-kwang, chief investment officer at Hanil Investment Trust Co.

  The country's strong presidential system, under which the president appoints all Cabinet members, also makes it highly unlikely a change in the parliamentary leadership would result in a serious change in government policy, investors said.

  In a sign emotions are still high

  over Roh's impeachment, a 46-year-old man set himself on fire atop a bridge and jumped to his death in Seoul on Tuesday, leaving a suicide note protesting at the impeachment.

  Uri Party chief Chung Dong-young, a former news anchor, abruptly quit his race for parliament on Monday and started a fast to stop what he calls the "coup d'etat" forces of the Grand National Party.
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