``Tax Was Imposed after Donga & Chosun Rejected Personnel Appointment``

Rep. Park Jong-Wung of the Grand National Party asserted that ``the government threatened the Donga and Chosun to change some editorial staffs and writers in April. When the various types of threatening did not work, the government retaliated the press by the enormous tax collection and the indictment of the owners.``

At the National Investigation, Rep. Park also insisted that ``some high officials of the government revealed a story that they had advised the President that the indictment of the press owners would be a burden over the government but the will of the President was so firm. That clarifies the President is the commander of this press suppression.``

Rep. Shim Jae-Kwon of the New Millennium Democratic Party urged for the immediate investigation of the Prosecutors Office to verify whether the tax probe investigation was initiated by the critical attitude of the press to the government, saying ``Bang Sang-Hoon, CEO of the Chosun Ilbo, asserted that `the tax probe investigation was initiated by the critical viewpoint of the press against the government` at the first trial of the press tax probe case on Sep. 24, if it is true, it would be an astonishing fact.``

However, Rep. Shim added that ``there is also a rumor circulating in the press circle that, contrary to the Mr. Bang`s assertion, the Chosun Ilbo requested for a corresponding reward for the change of its attitude toward the government.``

Park Joon-Young, a vice spokesperson of the government, remarked that ``it is true that the press has made various requests. A press company asked what it should do and said that it would to such and such.`` But Mr. Park did not revealed the details.

Concerning the limitation of the owners equity of the press, ``the government does not have any plan for the change of the ownership.``

He also said that, ``when NGOs requested for the limitation of the owners equity of the press companies, the President said `it would not be an appropriate act in the democratic nations` The most important thing is not the ownership but how to guarantee the independent editorship of the press.``

Rep. Shim Kyu-Chul of GNP revealed that 49 interviews out of the total 106 interviews made by the 3 major broadcasting companies were the participants of the `Staff Retreat of the Civic Press Organizations` which was supported by the Korea Press Foundation.

Rep. Shim insisted that ``46.2 percent of the interview by the 3 major broadcasting companies with so-called experts have been done with those who already agreed to the press suppression. Thus, the broadcast was biased from the beginning.``

Kim Jeong-Hun jnghn@donga.com