VZCZCXYZ0002
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHUL #0333/01 0330909
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 020909Z FEB 07
FM AMEMBASSY SEOUL
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2687
INFO RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 1988
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 2084
RHHMUNA/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RUALSFJ/COMUSJAPAN YOKOTA AB JA
RHMFISS/COMUSKOREA J2 SEOUL KOR
RHMFISS/COMUSKOREA J5 SEOUL KOR
RHMFISS/COMUSKOREA SCJS SEOUL KOR
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC//OSD/ISA/EAP//

UNCLAS SEOUL 000333 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KS PGOV PINR PREL
SUBJECT: PRESIDENTIAL HOPEFUL CHUNG DONG-YOUNG: CONTENDER 
OR ALSO-RAN? 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY:  Following the American model of celebrity 
turned politician, former news anchor Chung Dong-young 
enjoyed rising star status as one of the founders of the Uri 
Party, a close ally of Roh Moo-hyun, and a Minister of 
Unification who met with Kim Jong-il.  Soon after Chung's 
historic meeting, however, the Uri Party started to lose 
favor with the Korean public, and after it suffered a 
resounding defeat in the May 31, 2006 local elections, Chung 
took responsibility, resigned as Uri chair, and went into 
seclusion in Germany for four months.  Now back in the 
spotlight, Chung held an energetic rally January 21 to launch 
his presidential campaign.  Known for his emphasis on reform, 
Chung has been vocal in support of an inter-Korean summit 
this year.  Although his current rank in all major polls is 
low (fourth according to January 30 Donga Ilbo Newspaper's 
poll with a 3.3 percent approval rating), some pundits 
believe he could pose a strong challenge to the opposition 
candidate as the candidate from a new reform party that is 
likely to coalesce this summer. 
 
----------------------------------------- 
PORTRAIT OF THE POLITICIAN AS A YOUNG MAN 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (U) Chung Dong-young hails from the historically 
disadvantaged province of North Jeolla.  His father died 
while Chung was in high school but he managed to gain 
acceptance at Seoul National University, the country's top 
university.  In 1973, during college, he was jailed for his 
involvement with the Alliance of Democratic Youth and 
Students during an anti-government struggle.  He met his 
current chief policy advisor, Kyung hee University 
International Relations professor Kwon Manhak in the police 
station and they have been close friends ever since. 
 
¶3.  (U) Even before he graduated in 1979 with a BA in Korean 
history, he began a nearly 20-year career as a reporter and 
widely popular news anchor for MBC, which was interrupted by 
his graduate studies at the University of Wales, where he 
earned an MA in Journalism in 1987.  His tenure at MBC 
included a four-year stint as special correspondent in Los 
Angeles from 1989-1993. 
 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
CHUNG ENTERS POLITICS AND BECOMES A RISING STAR 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶4. (U) Chung entered politics when he was first elected to 
the National Assembly in 1996, and he maintained his seat in 
the 2000 parliamentary elections.  He ran on the New 
Millennium Democratic Party (MDP) ticket, based partly on his 
close alliance with Kim Dae-jung (DJ).  In 2002 he ran 
against and was defeated by Roh Moo-hyun in the presidential 
primaries, but actually emerged from the competition as a 
close ally of Roh's.  Chung, in speeches, highlights the fact 
that he ran in 2002 until the end and that he will never give 
up in fighting for the Korean people.  Roh asked him to serve 
as co-chairman of his election campaign and later, upon 
becoming president, appointed him as special envoy to Davos 
in February 2003, where he met with then Secretary of State 
Powell. 
 
¶5. (U) In September 2003, Chung, along with President Roh, 
Kim Geun-tae, and others, left the MDP to break the old 
paradigm of politics and founded the Uri Party.   Chung 
became its first chairman in 2004 and is largely credited 
with leading Uri to victory over the conservative Grand 
National Party in the April 2004 general elections.  Two 
months later, he was appointed Minister of Unification and 
Chairman of the National Security Council and served in this 
role until December 2005.  His high point was meeting with 
Kim Jong-il in Pyongyang on June 17, 2005, which was the 
highest level North-South contact since the historic June 
2000 Pyongyang Summit between Kim Jong-il and DJ.  It was 
after this meeting that North Korea announced it would return 
to the Six-Party Talks after a more than year-long boycott. 
In Chung's introductory film, played at his campaign launch, 
the meeting with Kim Jong-il is highlighted more than any 
other event.  Prof. Kwon told poloff that Chung is 
highlighting this event to distinguish himself from Lee 
Myung-bak, who is highlighting economic issues currently in 
his campaign. 
 
------------------- 
THE STAR SOON FALLS 
------------------- 
 
¶5. (U) However, it wasn't long before Chung fell from grace. 
After the Uri Party was soundly defeated in the May 31, 2006 
local elections--which was widely seen as a referendum on 
Roh's performance as president--Chung took responsibility and 
stepped down as party chair.  Chung immediately left the 
political scene in Korea, spending almost five months in 
Germany studying the German unification model, writing, and 
meeting with officials there.  He returned to Korea around 
November 2006 and began making the rounds, including a 
meeting with the Ambassador. 
 
---------------------- 
BID FOR THE PRESIDENCY 
---------------------- 
 
¶6. (U) In late December, shortly after President Roh gave his 
now famous speech where he criticized Chung (among others), 
Uri chair Kim Geun-tae and Chung announced they would leave 
the Uri Party to form a new political party.  As of February 
1, six lawmakers have formally left the Uri Party (one of 
whom, Chung Duk-koo, also resigned, since he was a 
proportional representative), and the party's future is in 
question.  However, Chung has promised that he won't leave 
the party until after the Uri's February 14 National 
Convention. 
 
¶7. (SBU) On January 21, Chung held a high-energy rally to 
kick off his presidential bid.  The event featured a dozen 
prominent National Assembly members and attracted about 2,000 
supporters, all visually synchronized in orange t-shirts. 
The rally, which was geared toward young and "ordinary" 
voters, emphasized that he is a candidate for all regions; to 
symbolize this, children brought dirt and water from all over 
the country, which they poured into a Jeju orange tree.  The 
event also featured testimonials from people such as a North 
Korean defector who talked about his hopes for reunification, 
a homemaker who supported Chung's vision for educational 
reform, and a businessman who discussed how Lee Myung-bak 
brought difficulties for his company in Seoul.  Later, 
however, Rep. Chun Yu-ok (GNP) criticized Chung for having 
children sing a song that supported the abrogation of 
National Security Law, something that Chung has long 
advocated. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Although Chung benefited slightly when Goh Kun 
decided to leave the presidential race on January 16, picking 
up some of the Jeolla-region voters who would have voted for 
former Jeolla governor Goh, he still ranks fourth in the 
polls with a 3.3 approval rate according to a poll by the 
Donga Ilbo published January 30. 
 
----------------------------- 
HIS POLICIES AND HIS ADVISORS 
----------------------------- 
 
¶9. (SBU) Chung is sometimes characterized as a "rebel" 
because of his political tendency to challenge the status 
quo.  His reputation may have begun as a reporter, who when 
told not to report on certain stories, would go ahead and 
report them anyway.  Chung claims that his motivation for 
joining politics was to "change the government."  In 2000, he 
challenged the old guard by calling for Kwon No-gap, then one 
of the most senior members of the MDP, to step back from 
party affairs.  Kwon ended up doing this, which eventually 
led to the weakening of the "old majority" of the MDP. 
 
¶10. (SBU) Given his former position as Minister of 
Unification, it is perhaps not surprising that Chung focuses 
much of his attention on North Korea.  Chung has stressed the 
need for inter-Korean dialogue to convince the DPRK to give 
up its nuclear program.  He strongly advocates an 
inter-Korean summit, saying in an interview, "National 
interest is the best security.  So rather than just looking 
to Pyongyang or Washington, we should be doing what we can. 
Of course, to that end, top on the list is an inter-Korean 
summit."  When he met the Ambassador on December 16, 2006, 
Chung stressed the need for the U.S. and ROK to work closely 
to implement the Joint Statement and to strengthen the 
U.S.-ROK alliance. 
 
 
¶11. (SBU) On the domestic economy, Chung thinks the 
government's focus should be on helping the middle class 
prosper.  He believes Korea should shift from a 
brick-and-mortar economy to one based on software, since the 
development-driven economy of the 1970s and 80s -- which put 
the ultimate value on the market -- is no longer a valid 
model anymore. 
 
¶12. (U) Some of Chung's advisors include: 
- Rep. Park Myung-kwang, who is also president of Nara Vision 
Research Institute, Chung's de facto campaign office 
- Kwon Manhak, Economics Professor at Kyunghee University and 
Director of Nara Institute 
- Song Kwan-jo, Professor at Kunkook University 
- Lee Jae-kyung, Research Chief, Nara Institute (political 
and public affairs issues) 
- Kim Yeon-chul, Professor at Korea University 
- Hong Hyun-ik, Senior Researcher at the Sejong Institute 
- Yoon Young-kwan, Professor at Seoul National University 
(former Foreign Minister) 
- Rhyu Keun-wan, Professor at Seoul National University 
- Chung Kap-young, Professor at Yonsei University (economic 
issues) 
 
------- 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶13. (SBU) While some pundits think Chung can not make a 
strong challenge for the presidency because he is 
inextricably linked with President Roh and the failure of the 
Uri Party, others believe that Chung has a strong chance of 
winning because Koreans strongly desire reform, and he is the 
most electable of the non-GNP candidates.   Although he 
barely registers in the current polls, in dynamic Korea so 
much can change in more than 10 months, the eloquent and 
photogenic Chung can not be written off. 
VERSHBOW