ID :
40122
Mon, 01/12/2009 - 09:46
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/40122
The shortlink copeid
President calls on parliament to act swiftly on economic bills
By Byun Duk-kun
SEOUL, Jan. 12 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Myung-bak verbally reprimanded members
of the National Assembly on Monday for what he called "shameful" violence between
rival parties and pressed the parliament to swiftly pass a set of bills he
claimed will help keep the country from sliding into a recession.
The remarks came as the president's first direct response to a recent spate of
violence at the National Assembly in which opposition legislators used
sledgehammers and chain saws to break down a barricade set up by ruling party
lawmakers.
Photos of the incident were splashed across the front pages newspapers around the
globe.
"Such pictures were shameful enough, but what shocked me more was what the
articles said. I saw an article that said such violence is frequently witnessed
at South Korea's National Assembly," the president said in his biweekly radio
address.
Lee said such incidents, compounded by South Korea's militant labor groups and
the North Korean nuclear issue, will depreciate the country's brand value which
he said currently stands at 2 percent of Japan's.
"What is deplorable is that politics may be destroying what the government and
our citizens have worked so long and hard for to raise our brand image," he said.
The rival parties normalized the National Assembly last week after a three-week
standoff, agreeing to legislate most of a set of government bills before the end
of an extraordinary session that will open in February.
Lee said the Assembly's sluggish pace was unacceptable.
"Three months in the first quarter and three months in the second quarter, these
six months are when our economy will be in its worst conditions and that is why
it is so important to quickly legislate those bills," he said.
"If the passage of the bills is delayed any further, the damaging effects of the
delay will be felt by our citizens, especially those in the lower socioeconomic
brackets," Lee added.
The president also called for punishment of legislators who used violence in the
recent standoff.
"Democracy comes with sacrifice and responsibility. If we again let this incident
just slip away, there will not be any political development," said the president.
bdk@yna.co.kr
(END)
SEOUL, Jan. 12 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Myung-bak verbally reprimanded members
of the National Assembly on Monday for what he called "shameful" violence between
rival parties and pressed the parliament to swiftly pass a set of bills he
claimed will help keep the country from sliding into a recession.
The remarks came as the president's first direct response to a recent spate of
violence at the National Assembly in which opposition legislators used
sledgehammers and chain saws to break down a barricade set up by ruling party
lawmakers.
Photos of the incident were splashed across the front pages newspapers around the
globe.
"Such pictures were shameful enough, but what shocked me more was what the
articles said. I saw an article that said such violence is frequently witnessed
at South Korea's National Assembly," the president said in his biweekly radio
address.
Lee said such incidents, compounded by South Korea's militant labor groups and
the North Korean nuclear issue, will depreciate the country's brand value which
he said currently stands at 2 percent of Japan's.
"What is deplorable is that politics may be destroying what the government and
our citizens have worked so long and hard for to raise our brand image," he said.
The rival parties normalized the National Assembly last week after a three-week
standoff, agreeing to legislate most of a set of government bills before the end
of an extraordinary session that will open in February.
Lee said the Assembly's sluggish pace was unacceptable.
"Three months in the first quarter and three months in the second quarter, these
six months are when our economy will be in its worst conditions and that is why
it is so important to quickly legislate those bills," he said.
"If the passage of the bills is delayed any further, the damaging effects of the
delay will be felt by our citizens, especially those in the lower socioeconomic
brackets," Lee added.
The president also called for punishment of legislators who used violence in the
recent standoff.
"Democracy comes with sacrifice and responsibility. If we again let this incident
just slip away, there will not be any political development," said the president.
bdk@yna.co.kr
(END)
