Park's Public Forum

입력 2012.11.27 (17:05)

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[Anchor Lead]

In what was dubbed a debate but was more of a televised public interview, presidential candidate Park Geun-hye sat alone and faced questions on her policies on Monday night.

[Pkg]

Ruling Saenuri Party presidential candidate Park Geun-hye held a televised debate in the form of an interview by the people. Park said she wanted to win the people's acceptance and laid out promises to make Korea a happier nation for everyone. She placed her priority on abolishing the four major social evils, which include: family debt, household violence, sexual violence and low-quality foods.

[Soundbite] Park Geun-hye (Saenuri Party Presidential Candidate) : "If family debt is neglected, it can threaten the nation’s economy so we’ll establish a fund for the people's happiness to resolve the issue pre-emptively."

The conservative candidate also promised to reform the political parties, National Assembly and the government and to apply "great political impartiality" in personnel affairs. Regarding claims that a female president is naturally weak in handling matters such as national security, Park said such preconceptions must be abolished and counterattacked the opposition campaign.

[Soundbite] "How could someone with an ambiguous attitude towards the NLL issue adequately tackle North Korea’s missile threats?"

Park stated all her policies including economic democratization, full-government support for raising children and cutting university tuition were genuine and pledged to apply them at all costs. But she added that no more burdens should be placed on the people and that raising taxes should only be a last resort. The candidate promised to devote her remaining political career to making the people content and asked for their support. The ruling Saenuri Party said Park did a good job in showing the people her readiness and experience, while the opposition campaign voiced their criticism saying her policies and visions revealed how unprepared and incompetent she was as a candidate.

2. The Contenders

[Anchor Lead]

The 22-day official campaign period for December's presidential election began today, November 27th. Let’s take a look at the candidates.

[Pkg]

Seven people have registered themselves with the National Election Commission to run as this year's presidential candidates. Park Geun-hye is listed as candidate number one, Moon Jae-in number 2, Lee Jung-hee number 3, Park Jong-sun at number 4, Kim So-yeon number 5, Kang Ji-won number 6 and Kim Soon-ja at number 7. Park Geun-hye reported to the National Election Commission that she owns US$2 million worth of assets while Moon Jae-in reported US$1.15 million. Park Jong-sun is the presidential candidate with the largest amount of assets at US$3.9 million. He is also the oldest to run among the seven candidates. Four of the candidates are women. Only Moon Jae-in completed the mandatory military service. The official campaign period began at 12 a.m. on Tuesday. The National Election Commission will strengthen its crackdowns on illegal campaigning. The commission says that the candidates and their spouses as well as their campaign managers are the only ones allowed to wear promotional sashes while campaigning. Banners introducing the political parties' policies were hung up on streets until November 26th. But the party banners will be banned starting from today, November 27th. The candidates will be allowed to put up only one banner in each district. Banners promoting people other than those registered will also be banned. Starting from November 30th, the candidates' banners will be allowed to be put up on the streets. The candidates are allowed to campaign through the Internet, social networking services, emails and text messages. However, they are not permitted to groundlessly blame or slander other candidates. Although voters are allowed to post photos of themselves casting their ballots on the Internet, they must not reveal who they have picked in the photos.

3. Campaign Strategies

[Anchor Lead]

The candidates are striving to devise campaign strategies that will grab the attention of voters as the election looms.

[Pkg]

Ruling Saenuri Party presidential candidate Park Geun-hye's campaign used the girl group Four Minutes' hit song "Hot Issue" as one of its campaign song. Her campaign will use some 20 carefully-picked campaign songs to appeal to voters of different regions and age groups. Checkups of campaign vehicles were completed and were already being dispatched across the nation. Park plans to electioneer in an average of ten districts a day. The campaign for main opposition Democratic United Party candidate Moon Jae-in chose 15 campaign songs. A squad of youth campaigners will help in giving the opposition candidate a young and cheerful image with a classy dance. Moon's side prepared a total of 290 campaign vehicles. During the campaign period, Moon will work to promote communication with voters through an interactive public relations strategy suited for them. Singer PSY refused to lend his megahit song "Gangnam Style" to any contender. Candidates are to employ various campaign strategies to win the hearts of voters in enticing ways.

4. Corrupt Contracts

[Anchor Lead]

In Korea, big construction projects have traditionally been carried out by large firms via so-called turnkey contracts, which often involve corruption. Now, the Seoul City government is setting out to put an end to the practice.

[Pkg]

This shopping center in the southeastern part of Seoul cost 1.2 billion U.S. dollars to build. It's been four years since the center was built, but it's still deserted because its rental prices turned out to be much higher than initially estimated. The complex was auctioned off for a high price because it was built through a turnkey contract, whereby the design and construction are completely outsourced. Eunpyeong New Town, which was also built through a turnkey contract, still awaits its residents, as few people are willing to buy its expensive apartments. It has also been found that construction companies fixed the bidding price of Subway Line number 9. The Seoul City government has decided to halt turnkey projects altogether in a move to stop corruption.

[Soundbite] Park Won-soon (Seoul Mayor) : "Our policies are focused on enhancing the fairness and transparency of construction bidding and making an environment where all construction companies can coexist."

From now on, twenty five districts in Seoul as well as the SH Corporation must use the design-bid-build method, whereby the design and construction of the projects are bid and performed by two independent contractors. Those who are accused of price fixing will have to pay a fine to the Seoul City government and will be penalized, preventing them from winning other orders. The three turnkey projects that the Seoul City government has outsourced over the past three years cost 2.3 billion U.S. dollars. However, in light of the new measures, it is very likely that the way the city's construction projects are carried out now will change profoundly.

5. Slacking at School

[Anchor Lead]

We recently reported on how high school seniors are essentially on vacation after writing the college entrance exam despite the school year having yet to end. It turns out that the same is true for many students finishing middle school.

[Pkg]

In the early afternoon, students wearing school uniforms hang around the school playground. They kill time fooling around with their friends. In the classrooms, students, who aren’t sitting down, joke around while others chat with friends in the back or in the hallway. This is how most middle school seniors in Korea spend their time at school after the final exams end around late October or early November. The question begs why these students act this way at school. In the case of most middle schools, the curriculum and final exams for seniors end in early November and so about two months remain void until winter break starts in late December. This occurs since schools plan class schedules according to the high school application schedule. Applications for high schools are conducted in two phases, the first phase for foreign language high schools, autonomous private schools and vocational schools, and the latter for ordinary schools. But in order to complete assigning students by early February, all admission results for first phase applications must come out in December, including extra admissions. In this case, first phase applications must be completed in November. Accordingly, the required submission of school grades for all three years of middle school causes schools to conduct final exams starting from late October. Voices are being raised that measures should be drawn up such as shortening the high school application period. Large voids are forming in public education as middle schools are increasingly turning their attention to high school entrance exams.

6. Saving Energy

[Anchor Lead]

Amid forecasts of a grave energy crisis and unprecedented cold this winter, Koreans are struggling to find ways to save as much energy as they can.

[Pkg]

This apartment complex in Chang-dong, Seoul was built 20 years ago. The some 500 fluorescent lights are being replaced with LED lights. This way, energy consumption can be cut in half while the lighting itself is much brighter. Concerns regarding the initial installation costs are automatically taken care of as well. If the local government signs a contract with the distribution association, installation costs can be covered with the saved energy costs in an average of five years. With the winter chill nearing, oil heater manufacturers are busier than ever. The demand for oil or gas stoves is increasing to replace electric heaters. Sales for this month alone have more than doubled year-on-year. As many Koreans are becoming more and more concerned on how they can save energy, sales of hot water mats and paper weather strips have also increased by more than 270 percent and 90 percent respectively.

7. Long Underwear

[Anchor Lead]

The looming energy crisis has also sparked a campaign to keep things simple when trying to stay warm.

[Pkg]

In the past, long underwear were a must for lower-income families during the winter in Korea. Long underwear have evolved continuously and are warmer. These days, they are produced thinner and are more elastic and some even generate heat. The designs are more diverse and fashionable and draw in younger consumers as well. The underwear's heat-retaining effects have also been improved. The now thinner and lighter underwear were put through a test using a thermal imaging camera. When not wearing the underwear, 29 degrees Celsius of heat was discharged from the body and dropped by at least three degrees when wearing them. To conserve energy during the winter, the Ministry of Public Administration and Security held a campaign promoting the effects of long underwear to public workers.

[Soundbite] Han Yeong-bae (Korea Energy Management Corporation) : "By wearing long underwear, we can save of about 20% on heating costs and save 1.4 trillion won (US$1 billion) annually in nationwide costs."

Back in the days, Koreans bought long underwear for their parents after getting their first salary. Now, long underwear are helping out in saving energy.

8. Bookstore Crisis

[Anchor Lead]

The rapid spread of e-books is causing a bleak business outlook for neighborhood bookstores.

[Pkg]

There is a medium-sized bookstore in Sinchon, western Seoul. The bookstore is on the verge of being shut down, since it is located in the district where there are plans for redevelopment. Residents in the neighborhood are working hard to protect the bookstore and keep it running.

[Soundbite] Yang Ri-ri (Representative, Resident Support Group) : "There is only one Hongik Bookstore in Seodaemun-gu in an educational district that houses nine universities. It has grown with local residents by offering community concerts and festivals for 30 years."

This bookstore near Seoul National University is also facing a crisis. Even though the bookstore’s sales have been falling, it has managed to stay in the business with the some help from its customers who provide it with donations. The number of neighborhood bookstores has been dropping since 2000. There were only 1,700 bookstores around the nation last year. The bookstore industry is urging the government to establish a fair book pricing system as a way to help these shops stay afloat.

9. Sticking Together

[Anchor Lead]

In Korea, the relationship between a mother and a daughter-in-law is traditionally a strained one, but that stereotype is not always the case. Today we're going to meet a daughter and mother-in-law who have lived together as friends for 57 years.

[Pkg]

This lady has come to the beauty salon to get a perm. And right next to her, her friend is getting a trim.

[Soundbite] Kim Bae-geum (Mother-in-Law) : "Don't cut under the ear; just trim the back."

[Soundbite] Jeong Jong-rye (Daughter-in-Law) : "Mother, your hair looks so pretty. You look beautiful."

At home, the two friends put on makeup and get dressed up together. Today, they’re going somewhere special.

[Soundbite] "We're going to receive an award, thanks to my mother-in-law"

The two women are mother and daughter-in-law. The mother-in-law is 100 years old and the daughter-in-law 77. The two arrive at an award ceremony. Here, large extended families of five generations are recognized and celebrated.

[Soundbite] "Mother! you and me, let's live healthily till we go to heaven. Live healthy."

[Soundbite] "All right."

That evening, all five generations gather at their home. When with the great-great-great grandmother, everyone seems to forget their age and go back to their childhood. With the arrival of the year-old youngest family member, all five generations have come together.

[Soundbite] "It's always good. Every time we gather. Though we don't live together, we have each other in our hearts all the time."

The two eldest grandmothers have lived together for almost six decades now. They say there's something that hasn't changed for all those years.

[Soundbite] "I can't see but she can see everything."

The thread goes through the needle on the first attempt. Since the mother-in-law has better eyesight than the daughter-in-law, she takes care of all the sewing. The daughter-in-law is in charge of something else.

[Soundbite] "There are mustard leaves for making kimchi. I’m going to make it for grandmother."

She takes care of the cooking. A healthy meal is prepared mainly of greens and vegetables. Almost every meal here contains fish and cow foot stew called wujoktang. The table is also set in a particular way. Though everything is all on one table, as the ladies have different tastes, the unseasoned dishes go in front of the mother-in-law and more spicy choices go in front of the daughter-in-law.

[Soundbite] "My side dishes on this dish are seasoned. The ones on that side are for grandmother."

The two eat breakfast, lunch and dinner together like this every day. Today, the five generations all gathered again to take a family picture. It takes quite a while for the whole family to enter. The studio is crowded with the full family, including the 100-year-old eldest and her one-year-old great-great-great grandson.

[Soundbite] "I feel great."

[Soundbite] "Grandmother turned 100 and our child is just about to turn one. I think this is a great opportunity."

This is one of Seoul’s largest families, a living example of the benefits of family staying close and caring for one another.

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  • Park's Public Forum
    • 입력 2012-11-27 17:05:20
    News Today
[Anchor Lead] In what was dubbed a debate but was more of a televised public interview, presidential candidate Park Geun-hye sat alone and faced questions on her policies on Monday night. [Pkg] Ruling Saenuri Party presidential candidate Park Geun-hye held a televised debate in the form of an interview by the people. Park said she wanted to win the people's acceptance and laid out promises to make Korea a happier nation for everyone. She placed her priority on abolishing the four major social evils, which include: family debt, household violence, sexual violence and low-quality foods. [Soundbite] Park Geun-hye (Saenuri Party Presidential Candidate) : "If family debt is neglected, it can threaten the nation’s economy so we’ll establish a fund for the people's happiness to resolve the issue pre-emptively." The conservative candidate also promised to reform the political parties, National Assembly and the government and to apply "great political impartiality" in personnel affairs. Regarding claims that a female president is naturally weak in handling matters such as national security, Park said such preconceptions must be abolished and counterattacked the opposition campaign. [Soundbite] "How could someone with an ambiguous attitude towards the NLL issue adequately tackle North Korea’s missile threats?" Park stated all her policies including economic democratization, full-government support for raising children and cutting university tuition were genuine and pledged to apply them at all costs. But she added that no more burdens should be placed on the people and that raising taxes should only be a last resort. The candidate promised to devote her remaining political career to making the people content and asked for their support. The ruling Saenuri Party said Park did a good job in showing the people her readiness and experience, while the opposition campaign voiced their criticism saying her policies and visions revealed how unprepared and incompetent she was as a candidate. 2. The Contenders [Anchor Lead] The 22-day official campaign period for December's presidential election began today, November 27th. Let’s take a look at the candidates. [Pkg] Seven people have registered themselves with the National Election Commission to run as this year's presidential candidates. Park Geun-hye is listed as candidate number one, Moon Jae-in number 2, Lee Jung-hee number 3, Park Jong-sun at number 4, Kim So-yeon number 5, Kang Ji-won number 6 and Kim Soon-ja at number 7. Park Geun-hye reported to the National Election Commission that she owns US$2 million worth of assets while Moon Jae-in reported US$1.15 million. Park Jong-sun is the presidential candidate with the largest amount of assets at US$3.9 million. He is also the oldest to run among the seven candidates. Four of the candidates are women. Only Moon Jae-in completed the mandatory military service. The official campaign period began at 12 a.m. on Tuesday. The National Election Commission will strengthen its crackdowns on illegal campaigning. The commission says that the candidates and their spouses as well as their campaign managers are the only ones allowed to wear promotional sashes while campaigning. Banners introducing the political parties' policies were hung up on streets until November 26th. But the party banners will be banned starting from today, November 27th. The candidates will be allowed to put up only one banner in each district. Banners promoting people other than those registered will also be banned. Starting from November 30th, the candidates' banners will be allowed to be put up on the streets. The candidates are allowed to campaign through the Internet, social networking services, emails and text messages. However, they are not permitted to groundlessly blame or slander other candidates. Although voters are allowed to post photos of themselves casting their ballots on the Internet, they must not reveal who they have picked in the photos. 3. Campaign Strategies [Anchor Lead] The candidates are striving to devise campaign strategies that will grab the attention of voters as the election looms. [Pkg] Ruling Saenuri Party presidential candidate Park Geun-hye's campaign used the girl group Four Minutes' hit song "Hot Issue" as one of its campaign song. Her campaign will use some 20 carefully-picked campaign songs to appeal to voters of different regions and age groups. Checkups of campaign vehicles were completed and were already being dispatched across the nation. Park plans to electioneer in an average of ten districts a day. The campaign for main opposition Democratic United Party candidate Moon Jae-in chose 15 campaign songs. A squad of youth campaigners will help in giving the opposition candidate a young and cheerful image with a classy dance. Moon's side prepared a total of 290 campaign vehicles. During the campaign period, Moon will work to promote communication with voters through an interactive public relations strategy suited for them. Singer PSY refused to lend his megahit song "Gangnam Style" to any contender. Candidates are to employ various campaign strategies to win the hearts of voters in enticing ways. 4. Corrupt Contracts [Anchor Lead] In Korea, big construction projects have traditionally been carried out by large firms via so-called turnkey contracts, which often involve corruption. Now, the Seoul City government is setting out to put an end to the practice. [Pkg] This shopping center in the southeastern part of Seoul cost 1.2 billion U.S. dollars to build. It's been four years since the center was built, but it's still deserted because its rental prices turned out to be much higher than initially estimated. The complex was auctioned off for a high price because it was built through a turnkey contract, whereby the design and construction are completely outsourced. Eunpyeong New Town, which was also built through a turnkey contract, still awaits its residents, as few people are willing to buy its expensive apartments. It has also been found that construction companies fixed the bidding price of Subway Line number 9. The Seoul City government has decided to halt turnkey projects altogether in a move to stop corruption. [Soundbite] Park Won-soon (Seoul Mayor) : "Our policies are focused on enhancing the fairness and transparency of construction bidding and making an environment where all construction companies can coexist." From now on, twenty five districts in Seoul as well as the SH Corporation must use the design-bid-build method, whereby the design and construction of the projects are bid and performed by two independent contractors. Those who are accused of price fixing will have to pay a fine to the Seoul City government and will be penalized, preventing them from winning other orders. The three turnkey projects that the Seoul City government has outsourced over the past three years cost 2.3 billion U.S. dollars. However, in light of the new measures, it is very likely that the way the city's construction projects are carried out now will change profoundly. 5. Slacking at School [Anchor Lead] We recently reported on how high school seniors are essentially on vacation after writing the college entrance exam despite the school year having yet to end. It turns out that the same is true for many students finishing middle school. [Pkg] In the early afternoon, students wearing school uniforms hang around the school playground. They kill time fooling around with their friends. In the classrooms, students, who aren’t sitting down, joke around while others chat with friends in the back or in the hallway. This is how most middle school seniors in Korea spend their time at school after the final exams end around late October or early November. The question begs why these students act this way at school. In the case of most middle schools, the curriculum and final exams for seniors end in early November and so about two months remain void until winter break starts in late December. This occurs since schools plan class schedules according to the high school application schedule. Applications for high schools are conducted in two phases, the first phase for foreign language high schools, autonomous private schools and vocational schools, and the latter for ordinary schools. But in order to complete assigning students by early February, all admission results for first phase applications must come out in December, including extra admissions. In this case, first phase applications must be completed in November. Accordingly, the required submission of school grades for all three years of middle school causes schools to conduct final exams starting from late October. Voices are being raised that measures should be drawn up such as shortening the high school application period. Large voids are forming in public education as middle schools are increasingly turning their attention to high school entrance exams. 6. Saving Energy [Anchor Lead] Amid forecasts of a grave energy crisis and unprecedented cold this winter, Koreans are struggling to find ways to save as much energy as they can. [Pkg] This apartment complex in Chang-dong, Seoul was built 20 years ago. The some 500 fluorescent lights are being replaced with LED lights. This way, energy consumption can be cut in half while the lighting itself is much brighter. Concerns regarding the initial installation costs are automatically taken care of as well. If the local government signs a contract with the distribution association, installation costs can be covered with the saved energy costs in an average of five years. With the winter chill nearing, oil heater manufacturers are busier than ever. The demand for oil or gas stoves is increasing to replace electric heaters. Sales for this month alone have more than doubled year-on-year. As many Koreans are becoming more and more concerned on how they can save energy, sales of hot water mats and paper weather strips have also increased by more than 270 percent and 90 percent respectively. 7. Long Underwear [Anchor Lead] The looming energy crisis has also sparked a campaign to keep things simple when trying to stay warm. [Pkg] In the past, long underwear were a must for lower-income families during the winter in Korea. Long underwear have evolved continuously and are warmer. These days, they are produced thinner and are more elastic and some even generate heat. The designs are more diverse and fashionable and draw in younger consumers as well. The underwear's heat-retaining effects have also been improved. The now thinner and lighter underwear were put through a test using a thermal imaging camera. When not wearing the underwear, 29 degrees Celsius of heat was discharged from the body and dropped by at least three degrees when wearing them. To conserve energy during the winter, the Ministry of Public Administration and Security held a campaign promoting the effects of long underwear to public workers. [Soundbite] Han Yeong-bae (Korea Energy Management Corporation) : "By wearing long underwear, we can save of about 20% on heating costs and save 1.4 trillion won (US$1 billion) annually in nationwide costs." Back in the days, Koreans bought long underwear for their parents after getting their first salary. Now, long underwear are helping out in saving energy. 8. Bookstore Crisis [Anchor Lead] The rapid spread of e-books is causing a bleak business outlook for neighborhood bookstores. [Pkg] There is a medium-sized bookstore in Sinchon, western Seoul. The bookstore is on the verge of being shut down, since it is located in the district where there are plans for redevelopment. Residents in the neighborhood are working hard to protect the bookstore and keep it running. [Soundbite] Yang Ri-ri (Representative, Resident Support Group) : "There is only one Hongik Bookstore in Seodaemun-gu in an educational district that houses nine universities. It has grown with local residents by offering community concerts and festivals for 30 years." This bookstore near Seoul National University is also facing a crisis. Even though the bookstore’s sales have been falling, it has managed to stay in the business with the some help from its customers who provide it with donations. The number of neighborhood bookstores has been dropping since 2000. There were only 1,700 bookstores around the nation last year. The bookstore industry is urging the government to establish a fair book pricing system as a way to help these shops stay afloat. 9. Sticking Together [Anchor Lead] In Korea, the relationship between a mother and a daughter-in-law is traditionally a strained one, but that stereotype is not always the case. Today we're going to meet a daughter and mother-in-law who have lived together as friends for 57 years. [Pkg] This lady has come to the beauty salon to get a perm. And right next to her, her friend is getting a trim. [Soundbite] Kim Bae-geum (Mother-in-Law) : "Don't cut under the ear; just trim the back." [Soundbite] Jeong Jong-rye (Daughter-in-Law) : "Mother, your hair looks so pretty. You look beautiful." At home, the two friends put on makeup and get dressed up together. Today, they’re going somewhere special. [Soundbite] "We're going to receive an award, thanks to my mother-in-law" The two women are mother and daughter-in-law. The mother-in-law is 100 years old and the daughter-in-law 77. The two arrive at an award ceremony. Here, large extended families of five generations are recognized and celebrated. [Soundbite] "Mother! you and me, let's live healthily till we go to heaven. Live healthy." [Soundbite] "All right." That evening, all five generations gather at their home. When with the great-great-great grandmother, everyone seems to forget their age and go back to their childhood. With the arrival of the year-old youngest family member, all five generations have come together. [Soundbite] "It's always good. Every time we gather. Though we don't live together, we have each other in our hearts all the time." The two eldest grandmothers have lived together for almost six decades now. They say there's something that hasn't changed for all those years. [Soundbite] "I can't see but she can see everything." The thread goes through the needle on the first attempt. Since the mother-in-law has better eyesight than the daughter-in-law, she takes care of all the sewing. The daughter-in-law is in charge of something else. [Soundbite] "There are mustard leaves for making kimchi. I’m going to make it for grandmother." She takes care of the cooking. A healthy meal is prepared mainly of greens and vegetables. Almost every meal here contains fish and cow foot stew called wujoktang. The table is also set in a particular way. Though everything is all on one table, as the ladies have different tastes, the unseasoned dishes go in front of the mother-in-law and more spicy choices go in front of the daughter-in-law. [Soundbite] "My side dishes on this dish are seasoned. The ones on that side are for grandmother." The two eat breakfast, lunch and dinner together like this every day. Today, the five generations all gathered again to take a family picture. It takes quite a while for the whole family to enter. The studio is crowded with the full family, including the 100-year-old eldest and her one-year-old great-great-great grandson. [Soundbite] "I feel great." [Soundbite] "Grandmother turned 100 and our child is just about to turn one. I think this is a great opportunity." This is one of Seoul’s largest families, a living example of the benefits of family staying close and caring for one another.

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