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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 07 SEOUL 000399 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV MARR ECON KPAO KS US
SUBJECT: SEOUL - PRESS BULLETIN; March 16, 2009 
 
TOP HEADLINES 
------------- 
 
Chosun Ilbo 
Taekwang Industrial Chairman Park Yeon-cha Gave Money and Other 
Things of Value to Some 70 Prosecutors and Ruling 
and Opposition Lawmakers 
 
JoongAng Ilbo 
"Mom School" Warns about Overreliance on Private Education 
 
Dong-a Ilbo 
EU Proposes Concluding ROK-EU FTA at April 2 
G20 Summit in London 
 
Hankook Ilbo 
Conglomerates Face Restructuring; 
ROK Lenders Set to Review Overall Health of Conglomerates Starting 
This Week 
 
Hankyoreh Shinmun 
Supreme Court Justice Shin Young-chul Likely to be Cleared of 
Influencing Trials of Anti-U.S. Beef Protestors through a Series of 
Emails to Junior Judges Involved in the Cases 
 
Segye Ilbo, Seoul Shinmun, All TVs 
Multiple Homeowners to Get Tax Cut 
 
 
DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS 
--------------------- 
 
North Korea kept the inter-Korean border closed for the third 
consecutive day yesterday, stranding 761 ROK people in the North, 
including 726 workers at the Kaesong Industrial Complex. (All) 
 
According to a key ROKG official, the ROKG is reviewing various 
countermeasures against the North Korean move, including applying 
the principle of "no work, no pay" to North Korean workers at the 
Kaesong Complex, in the judgment that Pyongyang needs to understand 
that any disruption to the operation of the joint industrial complex 
will also hurt North Korea. (Chosun) 
 
72 ROK companies operating in the Kaesong Complex are concerned that 
they would have to stop production if the closure continues for more 
than six days (starting Sunday, March 15), due to a limited supply 
of gas, food and other raw materials. (All) 
 
 
INTERNATIONAL NEWS 
------------------ 
 
According to a recent report by the Congressional Research Service 
(CRS), North Korea has removed 6,100 out of its 8,000 used fuel rods 
from its main Yongbyon nuclear facility in an effort to meet 
disarmament obligations it promised under a 2007 
denuclearization-for-aid deal. (JoongAng) 
 
 
MEDIA ANALYSIS 
-------------- 
 
-North Korea 
---------- 
 
Chosun Ilbo on Saturday (March 14) carried an inside-page report 
noting that North Korea informed not only international agencies but 
also the U.S. of its plan to launch a "satellite" between April 4 
and 8.  In a separate report, Chosun also observed that the Obama 
Administration is toning down its offensive against North Korea, 
including no longer mentioning the possibility of intercepting a 
missile launched by North Korea.   Chosun headlined its story: "Is 
 
SEOUL 00000399  002 OF 007 
 
 
U.S. Taking Steps for Bilateral Talks with North Korea?" 
 
Most of the ROK media reported on Saturday that if North Korea is 
successful in launching a rocket carrying a satellite as it 
mentioned in its notification, the rocket will have a range of up to 
4,000 kilometers and this is prompting the ROK, the U.S. and Japan 
to engage in all-out diplomatic efforts to deter the North Korean 
launch, which they see as a disguised missile test.  President 
Barack Obama was widely quoted as issuing a statement on March 12 
warning of risks posed by North Korea's missile plans. 
 
JoongAng Ilbo commented that the decision whether to impose 
sanctions against North Korea if it goes ahead with the launch 
hinges on cooperation from China and Russia.  JoongAng also 
editorialized: "The North's missile experiment will shake the 
balance of security over all of Northeast Asia.  First of all, it 
will stir Japan's anxiety over safety.  In 1998 Japan seethed at the 
North's launch of a rocket that flew over the Japanese islands. 
Because of the launch, right-wing forces in Japan easily called for 
enhancement of military capacity and such capacity was, indeed, 
boosted.  The same will happen this time too if the North goes ahead 
with its plan.  That's why some say right-wingers in Japan would 
welcome North Korea's missile test-launch." 
 
The ROK media today gave prominent play to North Korea's closure of 
the inter-Korean border for the third consecutive day, stranding 761 
ROK people in the North, including 726 workers at the Kaesong 
Industrial Complex. 
 
Citing a key ROKG official, Chosun reported that Seoul is reviewing 
various countermeasures against the North Korean move, including 
applying the principle of "no work, no pay" to North Korean workers 
at the Kaesong industrial complex, in the judgment that Pyongyang 
needs to understand that any disruption to the operation of the 
joint industrial complex will also hurt North Korea.  Most of the 
ROK newspapers carried editorials condemning the North's closure of 
the inter-Korean border.  Dong-a Ilbo, in particular, argued: "The 
Kaesong Complex cannot continue to run without assurances for the 
safety of ROK workers.  Seoul needs to come up with fundamental 
solutions this time.  With no prospects of political and military 
dtente between the two Koreas, bilateral economic cooperation 
projects could derail at any time.  Unless Pyongyang immediately 
reopens the border and provides a strong security guarantee, Seoul 
should make it clear that it can give up the Kaesong complex 
altogether.  The international community should deal with the 
civilian-threatening North with a clear understanding of its true 
intentions."  Hankyoreh Shinmun headlined its editorial: "North 
Korea Goes to Extremes in Border Closure." 
 
-G20 Minister's Meeting 
---------------------- 
 
Most of the ROK media reported today that finance ministers and the 
heads of central banks of the G20 pledged to fight "all forms of 
protectionism" during a March 14 meeting in London to coordinate 
agendas in advance of the G20 Summit in London on April 2.  Chosun 
Ilbo commented that the finance ministers and the heads of central 
banks issued a joint statement vowing to take all necessary measures 
to enable the global economy to recover and to fight trade 
protectionism but that the forum's effectiveness is being questioned 
since the joint statement includes many ambiguous points and lacks a 
concrete action plan. 
 
 
OPINIONS/EDITORIALS 
------------------- 
 
What Does Six-Party Talks Mean to Us 
(Chosun Ilbo, March 16, 2009, Page 34) 
 
By Advisor Kim Dae-joong 
 
These days, we are turning our attention to whether North Korea will 
go ahead with a missile launch and how the U.S. will respond to it. 
 
SEOUL 00000399  003 OF 007 
 
 
North Korea should make a brilliant option to pull the plug on its 
plan for a missile launch even though it is in the final stage of 
preparation.  This would allow North Korea to cooperate with U.S. 
efforts toward reconciliation and dialogue, while showing off its 
power at the same time.  By deploying these unexpected tactics, 
North Korea would grab more of the world's attention than its 
professed missile launch.  Moreover, if this happens, negotiations 
between the U.S. and North Korea would accelerate and play out in 
favor of North Korea.  This would lead to quick normalization of 
U.S.-North Korea ties and cause pro-North Korea leftists to reign in 
Korea. 
 
If the U.S. half-heartedly pursues sanctions even after North Korea 
makes a successful missile launch, we would find ourselves in an 
awkward position.  There have been some worrying signs.   The U.S. 
government stopped talking about its plan to intercept a missile 
from the North, and U.S. National Intelligence Director Dennis Blair 
acknowledged that North Korea is planning to launch a satellite. 
Experts are not sure whether the U.S. would aggressively seek to 
implement U.N. (Security Council) Resolution 1718 that calls for 
sanctions against North Korea.  If the U.S. takes a lukewarm 
attitude, the Lee Myung-bak Administration would inevitably hit a 
snag.  This is because there will be few effective options for the 
ROK to employ unilaterally without U.S. cooperation, and domestic 
voices calling for aid to the North will grow louder.  Leftists will 
increase their propaganda offensive, saying that today's situation 
is attributable to the Lee Myung-bak Administration's principled 
stance on North Korea. 
 
However, we have the Maginot line.  We should make it clear that we 
will not agree to any compromise that  would allow any form of a 
North Korean nuclear program to exist and that we will not bear the 
entire price for eliminating North Korea's nuclear programs. 
Otherwise, we should even start considering whether to withdraw from 
the Six-Party Talks.  The reason (for considering a withdrawal from 
the Six Party Talks) is that the Six-Party Talks are only a cover 
for bilateral contact between the U.S. and North Korea, and we do 
not know how long we have to remain involved in this situation 
without receiving anything in return. 
 
 
Safety Guarantees Needed at Kaesong Complex 
 (Dong-a Ilbo, March 16, 2009, Page 31) 
 
North Korea closed its border on Friday without explanation just 
three days after it had reopened it.  As a result, 727 South Koreans 
have been stranded in the North for four days.  Pyongyang is making 
a huge mistake, however, if it believes it can leverage the 
inter-Korean industrial complex in Kaesong to get its way.  Its 
erratic behavior will only invite a backlash from South Korea and 
the world, and Pyongyang will be left alone to suffer all the 
consequences. 
 
North Korea has consented to an agreement to ensure access, 
communication and customs clearance, and another to guarantee the 
safety of South Korean workers entering and residing at the complex. 
 Pyongyang also promised to protect the rights and interests of 
investors by enacting a civil law on governing the complex in 2002. 
Unfortunately the North broke the pact with South Korea and also 
violated its self-imposed law.  Under such circumstances, no one can 
trust North Korea and engage in economic cooperation with it.  The 
North is hastening its own demise with a closed economy. 
 
The South Korean government delivered a verbal message urging an 
immediate reopening of the border.  The ball is in North Korea's 
court, however, and this is lamentable.  Fundamentally, former 
Presidents Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun should take responsibility 
for the latest incident for their indulgence in the "sunshine 
policy" that prioritized ostensible improvement in inter-Korean 
relations over South Koreans' safety.  They consider the Mount 
Kumgang resort and the industrial complex to be the policy's biggest 
successes, but the resort project has been suspended for eight 
months due to the killing of a South Korean tourist by a North 
Korean soldier last summer.  The complex is now being held hostage 
 
SEOUL 00000399  004 OF 007 
 
 
under Pyongyang's political whims. 
 
As if they were spokesmen for North Korea, the main opposition 
Democratic Party and pro-North Korea groups are blaming South Korean 
President Lee Myung-bak for everything since he failed to carry on 
the sunshine policy.  In the face of a missile threat from 
Pyongyang, it is outrageous for them to dump all the blame onto the 
South Korean government, whose only mistake was to strive for 
inter-Korean economic cooperation and exchanges.  Such division is 
exactly what Pyongyang wants.  The North is waiting for Seoul to 
surrender and apologize by driving a wedge within the South Korean 
public. 
 
The Kaesong complex cannot continue to run without assurances for 
the safety of South Korean workers.  Seoul needs to come up with 
fundamental solutions this time.  With no prospects of political and 
military dtente between the two Koreas, bilateral economic 
cooperation projects could derail at any time.  Unless Pyongyang 
immediately reopens the border and provides a strong security 
guarantee, Seoul should make it clear that it can give up the 
Kaesong complex altogether.  The international community should deal 
with the civilian-threatening North with a clear understanding of 
its true intentions. 
 
* This is a translation provided by the newspaper, and it is 
identical to the Korean version. 
 
 
Missile Madness 
(JoongAng Ilbo, March 14, 2009, Page 30) 
 
On Thursday, North Korea notified the International Maritime 
Organization and the International Civil Aviation Organization of 
its plan to launch an experimental satellite, Kwangmyongsong-2.  The 
intention is to demonstrate in an indirect way that North Korea 
possesses high-level missile technology advanced enough to send an 
intercontinental ballistic missile to the United States.  The entire 
international society, including the United States, Japan, China, 
Russia and the United Nations as well as South Korea, expressed 
concern and opposition, but North Korea doesn't care at all about 
their response.  Worries grow that weeks-long diplomatic efforts to 
dissuade North Korea from conducting the launch will eventually 
fail. 
 
The North's missile experiment will shake the balance of security 
over all of Northeast Asia.  First of all, it will stir Japan's 
anxiety over safety.  In 1998 Japan seethed at North Korea's launch 
of a rocket that flew over the Japanese islands. 
 
Because of the launch, right-wing forces in Japan easily called for 
enhancement of military capacity and such capacity was, indeed, 
boosted.  The same will happen this time too if the North goes ahead 
with its plan.  That's why some say right-wingers in Japan would 
welcome North Korea's missile test- 
 
After North Korea's 1998 missile launch, Japan actively participated 
in the U.S.-led missile defense system.  So far, Japan has focused 
on enhancing its defense capacity but that could change.  Japan has 
already amended its pacifist constitution and now the "normal state 
theory" (which means the country must have a strong military 
capacity to match its economic power as the world's second-largest 
economy) is widely accepted.  The normal state theory, despite its 
name, means that Japan wants to be a military superpower with the 
capacity to attack.  North Korea's missile launch will provide 
decisive support to Japanese right-wing forces who want their 
country to become a military powerhouse. 
 
Japan's enhancement of its military capacity will inevitably 
stimulate China and Russia as well as us. North Korea's missile will 
come back at it like a boomerang.  An armament race will certainly 
put a burden on strong countries, but it will be a calamity to us 
and to North Korea, because we have no chance of winning the 
armament race against strong countries.  North Korea's missile 
blocks an opportunity for Northeast Asian countries to prosper 
 
SEOUL 00000399  005 OF 007 
 
 
together in peace. 
 
North Korea must stop toying with its missile because it will only 
harm itself. 
 
* This is a translation provided by the newspaper, and it is 
identical to the Korean version. 
 
 
Seoul Must Deal More Firmly with N. Korea 
(Chosun Ilbo, March 16, 2009, Page 35) 
 
North Korea has effectively detained about 720 South Koreans working 
at the joint Kaesong Industrial Complex since Friday.  On Thursday, 
Pyongyang notified international agencies that it would launch a 
satellite, which is widely believed in the West to be a long-range 
ballistic missile.  The North has been continuing to threaten land, 
sea and air skirmishes since last fall. 
 
Late last year it cut off official inter-Korean communication 
channels and suspended Kaesong tourist tour and railroad 
transportation between Seoul and Kaesong.  This year it raised 
objections to the Northern Limit Line, the de facto marine border 
off the west coast, declared inter-Korean political and military 
agreements null and void, threatened clashes along the DMZ, and 
warned it could not guarantee the safety of passenger jets flying 
through its airspace. 
 
Against all this, our government has presented no clear-cut response 
other than to wait and see.  North Korea's effective detention of 
more than 720 South Koreans is a serious provocation threatening the 
safety of our countrymen.  All the government has done is to protest 
and ask the North to please reopen the border.  Of course the 
government has to be careful because the approximately720 South 
Koreans are effectively being held hostage in Kaesong and the 
government has limited room to maneuver because of the symbolic 
significance of the joint industrial park. 
 
But the development this time around has been anticipated to an 
extent.  North Korea blocked the border on Monday and reopened it 
the next day.  The North expelled all South Korean government 
officials from the Kaesong industrial park late last year.  The fate 
of South Koreans was virtually left in the hands of the North, 
without any proper response. 
 
The government should have prepared for an emergency.  If it had 
made it clear when the North first closed and then reopened the 
border last week that business at the Kaesong industrial park cannot 
carry on unless Pyongyang pledges to keep the border open, we would 
not be in the same situation again. 
 
As for the North's preparations for a missile launch, the government 
is also merely waiting to see what Pyongyang does.  After the North 
notified international agencies of its so-called satellite launch, 
the government here seems to have decided there is now nothing it 
can do. 
 
Since the signs of the imminent missile test were detected in early 
February, the government attempted to prevent it through cooperation 
with the U.S.  That Pyongyang apparently ignores such diplomatic 
pressure either means it has no respect for the ROKG or that the 
ROKG lacks the requisite resolve. 
 
Recently Washington is said to have been reluctant to share 
intelligence on North Korea with Seoul, out of a suspicion that 
Seoul keeps leaking it.  Cooperation over North Korea can hardly 
move forward in such a situation.  The government must reassure the 
public that it is fully prepared to deal with North Korean 
provocations, instead of being left helpless to deal with them. 
 
* This is a translation provided by the newspaper, and it is 
identical to the Korean version. 
 
 
 
SEOUL 00000399  006 OF 007 
 
 
Casting Doubt on Kaesong's Future 
(Hankyoreh Shinmun, March 16, 2009, Page 23) 
 
It is inexcusable that North Korea has again, beginning Friday, 
prohibited Southerners from traveling to and from the Kaesong 
Industrial Complex.  If arbitrary decisions like this continue it 
will cast doubt on the complex's future.  ROK companies that have 
invested there are already being hurt by this. 
 
This move on the part of the North directly violates the "Agreement 
on the Entrance to and Sojourn at the Kaesong Industrial Complex and 
Mount Kumgang Tourism Zone" that exists between North and South 
Korea.  It also violates the North's own Kaesong Industrial Zone 
Law.  It also hurts the spirit of inter-Korean economic cooperation 
and damages South Korean public opinion.  When the North blocked 
free passage to and from Kaesong on March 9, it said it was doing so 
because of the "Key Resolve" joint U.S.-South Korea military 
exercises.  Not liking the war games does not justify attacking the 
Kaesong Industrial Complex project.  What other country is going to 
trust North Korea enough to invest there if this model of 
inter-Korean economic cooperation fails? 
 
What North Korea needs to do is clear.  For starters, it has to make 
sure people from the ROK and their goods can freely travel between 
Kaesong and the South.  Then it needs to convince the South and the 
whole world that nothing like this is ever going to happen again. 
Even if it allows travel to resume, companies in the complex are 
going to remain ill at ease.  Pyongyang has a basic responsibility 
to create conditions in which ROK citizens can relax and go about 
their work. 
 
The Lee Myung-bak Administration needs to take effective action to 
quickly bring the situation to an end.  It should not be too lax due 
to unrealistic optimism and it should not make matters worse by 
overreacting.  It also needs to completely reevaluate its North 
Korea policy.  The reason why things have come to this is due to the 
continuing deterioration of relations (between North and South) 
since the start of the Lee Administration, and because there are 
limits to what the administration can do by just "managing" the 
developments as they happen.  The Key Resolve exercises will end on 
March 20, but if there continues to be a lack of trust between the 
two sides you will never know when something like this can happen 
again.  The Lee Administration needs to give some serious thought as 
to why the North is reacting so sensitively to this year's joint 
South Korea-U.S. military exercises. 
 
The Kaesong Industrial Complex enterprise has already suffered a lot 
of damage.  It is of no help to either the North or South to have it 
be the focus of so much negative news coverage.  The North and South 
urgently need to make the right decision and engage each other in 
dialogue. 
 
* This is a translation provided by the newspaper, and it is 
identical to the Korean version. 
 
 
FEATURES 
-------- 
 
Crisis Hurting Korean Professionals Seeking Jobs in U.S.   (Dong-a 
Ilbo, March 14, 2009, Page 11) 
 
By Washington Correspondents Ha Tae-won and Lee Ki-hong 
 
A 39-year-old Korean worker at an information technology company in 
Boston with an H-1B visa for professionals turned on his computer at 
work.  In an e-mail message from the company's personnel department, 
he was told he would be laid off. 
 
He was told to leave his office by 5 p.m. the day he received the 
notification. 
 
"While I was packing up, the personnel officer watched me nearby," 
he said.  "I felt so bad because the officer apparently wanted to 
 
SEOUL 00000399  007 OF 007 
 
 
ensure that I didn't take any c-o-n-f-i-d-e-n-t-i-a-l documents from 
my computer," the worker said. 
 
For another Korean who graduated from a prestigious U.S. business 
school and dreamed of working on Wall Street, the past several 
months have been a nightmare. 
 
While working at a New York hedge fund with an optional practical 
training visa after graduation, his employer promised him an H-1B 
visa.  His boss reneged on the pledge amid the economic crisis, so 
the 28-year-old Korean had to go home since his training visa was 
valid for just one year. 
 
Amid the economic crisis, Korean professionals with degrees earned 
in the United States are losing their jobs. 
 
American companies provide H-1B visas for nearly 120,000 employees. 
The road to acquire the visa is long and rough, however, as more 
than one million people want it every year.  Moreover, the 
implementation of the Troubled Asset Relief Program has led to fewer 
job opportunities for non-citizens since the inauguration of 
President Barack Obama. 
 
The program requires a company receiving government funds to prove 
that it tried to employ U.S. citizens before hiring foreigners, and 
that the foreigners to be employed are the most qualified for the 
positions offered. 
 
In letters to foreign students, job placement centers at business 
schools, including Harvard and (University of) Pennsylvania, 
conveyed the information.  They tell students that job offers by 
U.S. companies could be withdrawn due to the economic crisis. 
 
A Korean set to earn a graduate degree from a New York school in the 
spring is desperate for a job.  General Electric, American Express 
and many other U.S. companies that previously were relatively 
generous to overseas students with jobs, have allowed only Americans 
and permanent residents to apply for internships this year. 
 
Certain students are going back to school.  A Korean who received an 
MBA from George Washington University will seek a degree in 
information technology at the school because of difficulty in 
finding a visa sponsor. 
 
Others go so far as to defer their theses to maintain their foreign 
student status, though that means they must keep paying high 
tuition.  A Korean in Virginia who is on the verge of finishing his 
dissertation said he plans to stay a student for another semester. 
 
The delayed ratification of the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement is 
also preventing many Koreans from getting jobs in the United States. 
 The accord allows for a job visa quota for Koreans separate from 
the annual limit on the number of the H-1B visas issued. 
 
Experts in the United States have warned of the increasing exodus of 
foreign professionals to their home countries and the consequences 
of their departures for America. 
 
The Washington Post said, "When smart young foreigners leave these 
shores, they take with them the seeds of tomorrow's innovation. 
 
* This is a translation provided by the newspaper, and it is 
identical to the Korean version. 
 
 
STEPHENS