(Kim Death) Business groups mourn death of ex-president Kim Dae-jung

SEOUL, Aug. 18 (Yonhap) -- South Korean business organizations expressed grief
Tuesday over the death of former President Kim Dae-jung, who was at odds with
them while in office due to his drive to reform bloated business conglomerates.

The groups, including the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI), praised Kim for
exercising leadership that helped the South Korean economy emerge from the Asian
financial crisis in the late 1990s.
Kim, who died of complications from pneumonia earlier in the day at the age of
85, served as president of South Korea from 1998-2003. He took office with the
mission of rebuilding the battered economy and reforming conglomerates.
In 2000, Kim held the first summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il and won
the Nobel Peace Prize for his policy of engaging North Korea instead of isolating
it.
"Former President Kim did much to help the economy swiftly recover at the height
of the (Asian) financial crisis," the FKI said in a statement.
"He also devoted himself to defusing tensions on the Korean Peninsula with a
policy of peace and reconciliation toward North Korea," it said.
Separately, the Korea Employers Federation (KEF) expressed "profound condolences."
"We won't forget the achievements of former President Kim, who sacrificed himself
for democracy and overcoming the financial crisis," the KEF said.
Kim, who had been hospitalized for pneumonia since July 13, died of heart and
other organ failure at 1:43 p.m. at Yonsei University's Severance Hospital in
Seoul, hospital officials said.
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