The liberal politician expected to succeed disgraced Park Geun-hye as South Korea’s next president could make significant policy changes on…
SEOUL —
The liberal politician expected to succeed disgraced Park Geun-hye as South Korea’s next president could make significant policy changes on North Korea, on a U. S. missile-defense system that has enraged China and on powerful big business.
A Constitutional Court on Friday dismissed Park from office after upholding her impeachment over a corruption scandal involving “chaebol” – the family-run conglomerates that dominate Asia’s fourth-biggest economy.
A presidential election will be held by May 9 and opinion polls suggest South Koreans will opt for change by electing a liberal into the presidential Blue House, ending nine years of conservative rule.
The front-runner is Moon Jae-in, a human rights lawyer who was a top aide to former President Roh Moo-hyun, an advocate of a “sunshine policy” of engagement with North Korea.
Moon has criticised the two former conservative presidents – Park and her predecessor, Lee Myung-bak – for derailing the progress made inter-Korean relations during the previous liberal administrations.
He calls for a “two-step” approach on North Korea, with talks leading first to “economic unification” and ultimately “political and military unification”.
Moon on Sunday stressed the need to “embrace and be united with” the North Korean people, while adding that he could never accept its “dictatorial regime”, or its trampling of rights.
He denounced the North’s “cruel and ruthless behavior” in the wake of the murder in Malaysia last month of Kim Jong Nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
But he told a news conference there was no choice but to recognise Kim Jong Un as leader.
