Park puts economy, safety first

President-elect Park Geun-hye’s government restructuring plan, unveiled Tuesday, calls for empowering ministries overseeing the economy while emphasizing public safety amid a rising number of sex crimes.

Under the proposal, the team scrapped the Ministry of Special Affairs in charge of facilitating dialogue with opposition parties.

Analysts widely agreed that the plan reflects commitments made by Park during the presidential campaign.

But some, including Professor Hahm Sung-deuk at Korea University, remained skeptical about some elements of the draft, which is subject to change depending on inter-party negotiations in the National Assembly.

Hahm said the role of the ministries handling economic affairs appeared to be “over-emphasized” while the call for greater communication with lawmakers was ignored.

Under the proposed plan, the new government will create the Ministry of Creativity and Science and the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, the latter of which was scrapped five years ago during government restructuring.

Park vowed to create the maritime ministry to better cope with the shift of geopolitics in the region as neighboring countries seek to build up their maritime capabilities.

The plan also calls for empowering the Small and Medium Business Administration, created to support start-ups, venture businesses and owners of mom-and-pop stores being pushed out of business by large retailers.

The moves come against the backdrop of widening income inequality between the upper- and lower-income classes amid global financial turmoil.

Hahm remained cautious about the feasibility of reviving the position of deputy prime minister to oversee ministries handling the economy.

“I am not so sure if the plan will get the green light from parliament. This post would remind people of the era of industrialization in the 1970s when the Economic Planning Board spearheaded a drive for export-led economic growth,” he said. “It’s questionable if this can be approved as lawmakers in opposition would not feel comfortable with this.”

The transition team’s proposal could be rewritten at the Assembly as a result of political bargaining between the ruling and opposition parties.

In 2008, the transition team for then President-elect Lee Myung-bak had to rewrite a restructuring plan after opposition parties opposed the scrapping of the Ministry of Gender Equality and the Ministry of Unification. These two ministries survived, and in return, the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, which the team intended to leave intact, was sacrificed.

“The special affairs ministry could facilitate communication between the new President and opposition parties when her initiatives face major hurdles in the legislature. I think that this should have remained intact,” Hahm said.

The transition team’s proposal also highlighted public safety as it seeks to rename the Ministry of Public Administration and Safety into the Ministry of Safety and Public Administration, a move to emphasize the new government’s priority. This came amid a rising sex crime rate and murders of women. <The Korea Times/Kang Hyun-kyung>