President Lee reaffirms scrapping of grand canal project

SEOUL, Dec. 30 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Myung-bak urged parliament Wednesday to
end a struggle over a river restoration project, reaffirming that it is not a
prelude to an abandoned campaign pledge to build a nationwide canal, as suspected
by opposition lawmakers.
Building a canal running down the southern half of the Korean Peninsula was one
of Lee's key campaign pledges in his 2007 presidential election, but he has since
repeatedly vowed not to pursue the goal due to public opposition.
"The government has already announced it will not build a grand canal under this
administration and it is physically impossible to do so (during my term)," Lee
said in a joint policy briefing by four government ministries in charge of the
river restoration program. They are the ministry of food, agriculture, forestry
and fisheries, the environment ministry, the public administration and security
ministry and the ministry of land and transportation.
Lee called the "Four Rivers Project" an internationally announced environmental
effort aimed at fighting climate change, implying that changing its course would
undermine his government's credibility not only here but also in the
international community.
The project has been blocking a parliamentary vote on next year's budget partly
due to an opposition claim that the large amount of money requested by the
government for the restoration project is an attempt to begin the groundwork for
a canal.
The ruling Grand National Party and the main opposition Democratic Party
belatedly began discussing the state budget and the budget for the river
restoration project separately this week.
Political observers, however, believe the parliament will likely fail to approve
the state budget before the end of the year, causing delays in major government
projects and spending. The president said a delay would cause serious damage to
the country and its efforts to revive the economy.
"We will continue to maintain an emergency economic steering system at least
until the end of the first half of next year. The government will quickly and
effectively implement its spendings from Jan. 1 if the budget bill is passed
before the end of the year," he told the meeting.
Wednesday's policy briefing, the sixth of seven such sessions planned before the
year's end, was part of an effort to enable the quick implementation of the
government's spending plan from the beginning of the New Year. Policy briefings
have usually taken place at the beginning of the year under previous governments.
bdk@yna.co.kr
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