A key leftist presidential candidate’s election pledges aimed at closer ties with North Korea, including student exchange programs, are drawing strong criticism for their overly high expectations that are out of step with current inter-Korean relations.
Choo Mi-ae, a former five-term ruling Democratic Party (DP) lawmaker and justice minister under the Moon administration, said on Thursday that she will establish a “Youth Peace Fund” worth 200 billion won ($174.7 million) through the government and the private sector aimed at supporting the young generation from both North Korea and South Korea. She added that the fund will be spent on joint projects run by young people from the two Koreas that focus on technology development and others related to the fourth industrial revolution and climate change. Choo said she will increase the fund to 1 trillion won by the end of her term as a president.
“The next administration following the Moon Jae-in administration that ran the Korean Peninsula peace process policy would have to focus on establishing peace in the Korean Peninsula through an end of war agreement and peace agreement,” she said. “In order to do this, we need future generations to share the same idea about reunification and give them more opportunities to participate in this.”
Choo’s most controversial plan is a student exchange program with key North Korean universities. “I will start with public universities first and expand it to private schools gradually,” she said. “The safety of exchange students will be secured through a government-level agreement, and we can start with online courses first before that agreement is finalized.”
Her plan is to establish student exchange programs between Seoul National University and Kim Il Sung University, Pohang University of Science and Technology and Kam Chaek University of Technology, and Korea National University of Arts and Pyongyang University of Music and Dance. In short, her plan is to have students who graduated from Seoul National University receive graduate certificates from Kim Il Sung University as well. They will be alumnus just like Kim Jong-il.
Cho Tae-yong, former First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs and a current lawmaker from the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), told the media that her remarks were unrealistic and irresponsible. “Does she think it is realistic to send college students to North Korea while there are six South Korean nationals detained and serving time in the north?” he asked. “It is irresponsible for a presidential candidate to announce such a campaign pledge while ignoring this fact.”
Experts showed concern that there is a chance that her ideas would violate the United Nations’ sanctions toward North Korea. Shin Beom-cheol, director at the Research Institute for Economy and Society, told online media outlet Newdaily that, “I don’t understand whether there is any significance to her pledges, since we are not allowed to invest in North Korea related projects due to UN sanctions.”
On Kim Il Sung University’s website, there is an introduction of the school by President Choe Sang-gon. “Kim Il Sung University is a university with great pride,” he wrote. “It is named after the great leader Comrade Kim Il-sung and is the alma mater of the great leader Comrade Kim Jong-il.”
“Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un said that the history of the university is one of the shining victory of the Juche-oriented ideas and theories of the great Comrades Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il on education and their outstanding leadership. He continued that it is also the history resplendent with the patriotic and faithful service of all its teaching staff, students and graduates who have worked devotedly for the victorious advance of the revolutionary cause and the prosperity of their country, cherishing infinite loyalty to the Party and the leaders.”
There are many online comments on the news articles reporting on Choo’s recent announcement. They mostly criticize her for such an unrealistic idea, calling it another appeasement policy using taxpayer money.
One comment reads as follows:
“Who is going to take responsibility if an exchange student from South Korea is shot to death in North Korea? Who is going to take responsibility if a person is abducted in North Korea and sent to the coal mines? Are you going to say that a person went to North Korea because of financial problems if he or she is shot to death and the body is burnt?”
The comment referred to real incidents involving South Koreans who went to North Korea.
Meanwhile, the state-run Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) announced on Thursday that North Korea’s annual trade plunged 73.4 percent in 2020 from the previous year as the country shut its borders due to COVID-19.
The combined amount of North Korea’s trade recorded $863 million in 2020, a huge drop from $3.24 billion tallied in 2019. “The decrease came as both exports and imports lost ground after North Korea closed down its border amid COVID-19, coupled with prolonged economic sanctions from the United Nations,” the KOTRA reported.
Outbound shipments came to $89 million, which dropped 68 percent from the $278 million recorded in 2019. Imports also fell 74 percent over the same period to reach $774 million, leading to a trade deficit of $684 million.
Trade between North Korea and China came to $762 million, accounting for 88.2 percent of the North’s annual trade.
