Three Alternatives to New Administrative Capital

The alternatives to the thwarted plan to construct a new administrative capital de facto have narrowed down to three—a special administrative city plan, an administrative town plan, and an education and science administration city plan.

On December 17, the Presidential Committee on Alternatives to New Administrative Capital (two chairmen: Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan, and professor Choi Byung-sun at Kyungwon University) held a conference at the Central Government Complex in Sejongro, Seoul, and established five “underlying principles” to narrow down 10 alternatives suggested by various communities.

The five principles are “to reflect the ruling of the Constitutional Court,” “to disperse the overpopulation of the Seoul metropolitan area and to lead the balanced national development,” “to construct a self-sufficient new city with central administrative agencies,” “to utilize the favorable location of Yeongi and Gongju area in South Chungcheong Province,” and “to adopt policies for balanced national development, such as moving government agencies to provinces, prospering the Seoul metropolitan area, decentralizing, and developing the underdeveloped areas, in tandem with the construction of a new city.”

Upon these principles, the three options left are: “to move all central agencies and ministries except the presidential office, and to grant legal status as a special city (a special administrative city plan),” “to move most of the central administrative agencies and ministries except the Cheong Wa Dae, diplomatic and security-related ministries (an administrative town plan),” and “to move selected agencies such as education, science and technology-related ministries (an education and science administration city plan).”

Yong-Gwan Jung yongari@donga.com