Korean gov`t hits back at Seoul mayor`s attack on FTA

The Korean government denied the written opinion of Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon on the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement Tuesday, saying, “Park`s statement contains many exaggerated concerns, which are not based on facts.”

The central government held a joint briefing with deputy ministers from the foreign, finance, public administration and knowledge economy ministries and rebutted every single item raised by the city. It is rare for ministries to hold a meeting within a day after a municipal or provincial government head expresses his or her opinion on an issue.

With Internet users spreading distorted information on the agreement and opposition parties taking advantage of this for their campaign against the accord, the central government decided not to stay silent.

Park`s statement warned that if the agreement takes effect, the number of disputes will increase via the investor-state dispute system, which will increase the city`s financial burden.

In response, the government said the defendant of an investor-state dispute settlement is a state.

The city also said foreign equity ownership of Korea Electric Power Corp. and Korea Gas Corp. should be regulated, and urged a cap on the price hike in utility bills.

To this, the government said, “Both companies have clarified the limits on stake ownership by foreigners, which requires no further measures.”

On the fear that large American retailers will raid the Korean market, the government said, “Since Korea opened its retail market in 1988, it is misleading to claim that the market will be opened for the first time due to the free trade agreement.”

january@donga.com