[Editorial] Sustain jobs

The government on Wednesday vowed to create 550,000 jobs directly with 3.6 trillion won ($2.9 billion) in response to the unemployment shock from the novel coronavirus. It will also create a 40 trillion won fund to prevent massive layoffs in key industries. Most of the jobs to be created with taxes are temporary. They are similar to the part-time jobs created for seniors such as school crossing guards and picking up cigarette butts. They are not long-term, sustainable jobs. To protect employ

April 24, 2020

[Editorial] Close watch

Speculation is mounting about what happened to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, who has not been seen in public since April 11. What prompted the guesswork most of all was his failure to make his annual visit to the mausoleum of his late grandfather Kim Il-sung last week. April 15 marked the 108th anniversary of the birth of the communist state’s founder. US news outlet CNN reported Tuesday that Washington was looking into intelligence that Kim was “in grave danger” after und

April 23, 2020

[Editorial] Unemployment crisis

In a speech Sunday, President Moon Jae-in emphasized that maintaining employment is the key to overcoming the economic impact from the novel coronavirus outbreak. He said the government would prioritize providing support to companies that try to keep jobs through labor-management agreements. As he noted, the focus of coping with the fallout from the coronavirus crisis should be placed on preventing massive unemployment. However, it should be pointed out that the Moon government’s efforts

April 22, 2020

[Editorial] Rescue funds

Buoyed by its overwhelming win in last week’s parliamentary election, the ruling Democratic Party of Korea is pushing to provide all households with up to 1 million won ($820) in emergency relief money to help them through hardships caused by the novel coronavirus outbreak. Last month, the government unveiled a plan to offer rescue funds to about 14 million households comprising the bottom 70 percent income bracket. But the liberal ruling party pledged during the election campaign that i

April 21, 2020

[Editorial] Beware arrogance

Shortly after the ruling bloc won a landslide victory in the April 15 general election, it embarked on some worrisome acts.　 Referring to Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, Woo Hee-jong, co-leader of the Citizen Party, which had an electoral alliance with the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, posted on Facebook on Thursday, “Citizens who held candlelight rallies in front of the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office last year are now asking what course you will take.”　 Just a day after

April 20, 2020

[Editorial] Overwhelming victory

The liberal ruling Democratic Party of Korea won an overwhelming victory in Wednesday’s parliamentary election, which was seen as a midterm judgment on President Moon Jae-in’s five-year tenure that kicked off in May 2017. It took 163 of the 253 constituencies across the country, while its satellite party formed to field proportional representation candidates garnered 17 seats. This gives the ruling party a dominant majority in the 300-member National Assembly, allowing it to enact

April 17, 2020

[Editorial] COVID-driven job crisis

Recent data on the labor market for March raises concerns about massive job losses driven by the novel coronavirus pandemic.　 Before the outbreak, the Korean employment situation was going downhill under President Moon Jae-in’s administration.　 As many as 215,000 midlife career jobs for those in their 30s and 40s, the backbone of the Korean economy, vanished last year alone. It was a terrible consequence of the current government’s income-led growth policy. The government poured mo

April 16, 2020

[Editorial] Election day

Voters will go to 14,330 polling booths across the nation Wednesday to elect 300 lawmakers who will serve a four-year term beginning May 30. The election is essentially seen as a midterm judgment of President Moon Jae-in’s five-year tenure, which expires in 2022. However, the spread of the novel coronavirus has shifted focus to the assessment of how his government has handled the health crisis from what it has done over the past three years. The fallout from the outbreak and competitive

April 15, 2020

[Editorial] Prop up large companies

Economic shocks from the coronavirus pandemic are deepening. Bank of Korea Gov. Lee Ju-yeol said Thursday that it will not be easy for the South Korean economy to grow 1 percent this year even if the pandemic subsides in the second quarter. The Korea Economic Research Institute forecast minus 2.3 percent, and global institutes including Nomura Securities and Fitch Ratings projected that Korea will show negative growth this year. The Korean economy shrank on two occasions, in 1980 (minus 1.6 pe

April 14, 2020

[Editorial] Prolonged stalemate

Late last month, some local media outlets reported that Seoul and Washington had reached a tentative agreement to renew a bilateral deal on how to split the cost of stationing 28,500 US troops here. Quoting an unnamed official at South Korea’s presidential office, the reports said a final deal could be announced as early as April 1. At the time, there was speculation that negotiations between the two sides had gained momentum after President Moon Jae-in and his US counterpart, Donald Tru

April 13, 2020

[Editorial] Nightlife infection alert

Two female workers entertaining men at a large hostess bar in southern Seoul recently tested positive for the new coronavirus, raising concerns about mass infections at nightlife locations. About 100 male customers and staff workers of the bar are said to have been exposed to the workers. First of all, it is surprising that hostess bar business was booming even when most people were enduring the inconvenience of social distancing voluntarily. The outbreak at the bar raises concerns that night

April 10, 2020

[Editorial] Populist competition

Rival political parties have competitively proposed to provide more people with more money in emergency rescue aid to cushion the impact of the novel coronavirus crisis. Such populistic competition is engulfing other policy issues in the campaign for the April 15 general election. The ruling Democratic Party of Korea pledged Monday it would push to expand the scope of recipients of planned emergency relief funds to all households. Party leader Lee Hae-chan said it was important to show that t

April 9, 2020

[Editorial] E-learning concerns

The new academic year for elementary, middle and high schools is scheduled to begin gradually with online classes following repeated postponements due to the novel coronavirus. Middle and high school students in their third and final year will start to learn online Thursday. Online classes will open on April 16 for first and second graders at middle and high schools and fourth to sixth graders at elementary schools. First to third graders at elementary schools will receive remote education sta

April 8, 2020

[Editorial] Food shortage

Massive lockdowns imposed around the world to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus have drastically slowed down international trade and food supply chains. This led three related international agencies last week to warn of a potential global food shortage if the coronavirus crisis is not managed properly. “Uncertainty about food availability can spark a wave of export restrictions, creating shortages in the global market,” said the joint statement signed by the heads of the U

April 7, 2020

[Editorial] Senseless decision

A university approval committee of the Education Ministry permitted Korea Electric Power Corp. on Friday to set up a legal entity to create and manage a university for engineering degrees. Kepco will proceed with follow-up measures with a goal of opening the university in March 2022, two months before the end of the Moon Jae-in presidency.　 The state utility says the new university will develop the world’s most talented energy engineers. Atomic power is an energy field where Korea&rsqu

April 6, 2020

[Editorial] Unprecedented furlough

It is regretful to see about half of 8,600 South Korean workers at US military bases being forced to go on unpaid leave due to stalled cost-sharing negotiations regarding the stationing of 28,500 American troops here. The US Forces Korea put thousands of Korean employees on indefinite furlough Wednesday, saying it has run out of funds to pay them. It marks the first time that Korean employees have been furloughed since the allies worked out a framework for sharing defense burden more than thre

April 2, 2020

[Editorial] Thorough compliance

Starting Wednesday, the government placed all new arrivals here in a mandatory self-quarantine for two weeks in a bid to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus. Regardless of the country of departure, nationality or length of visit, they must quarantine themselves in their private dwellings in Korea or at government-designated facilities. Though the government has not barred the entry of foreigners, nonessential visits including foreign tourist arrivals are expected to decrease. The gov

April 1, 2020

[Editorial] Relief money

In its latest measure to cushion the impact of the novel coronavirus crisis, President Moon Jae-in’s administration on Monday decided to grant what it called emergency disaster relief money to households in the bottom 70 percent income bracket. A total of 14 million households that comprise 35 million people in a country with a population of 51 million are expected to benefit from the relief program. Under the plan, 1 million won ($820) would be doled out to each household with four or m

March 31, 2020

[Editorial] Keep up vigilance

The presidential office said Sunday its National Security Office chief held an emergency meeting shortly after North Korea fired two short-range projectiles off its east coast early in the morning. Cheong Wa Dae disclosed the meeting to debunk criticism that it had not responded to the emergency situation. It neither condemned the North’s provocation, nor expressed regret. It only said through a spokesperson that “we are watching the situation.” North Korea’s short-ra

March 30, 2020

[Editorial] Unnecessary costs

Two state-funded lenders last week decided to provide 1 trillion won ($825 million) in emergency loans to Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co., which is experiencing a credit crunch. Doosan Heavy, the country’s largest power generation equipment maker, suffered a net loss of 495.2 billion won last year. In 2016, it posted an operating profit of 280 billion won. The company has made self-rescue efforts, including cutting out executives and forcing its 6,700 workers to go on unpa

March 29, 2020