Welcome to BASE21

By Cho Soong-ho
Staff reporter

Unexpected strikes to the back of head after dragging on the time - This expresses the attitude of the ruling Millennium Democratic Party (MDP), lead by President Kim Dae-jung. MDP announced that the foreign employment permit system (EPS) is suspended due to economic unrest.
This fact was disclosed in a Party announcement on its homepage on January 10. The party's spokesperson wrote about 'the result of talking of party's four important positions and chairman of special committees', saying, "Kim Yun-sik, Chairperson of the 'Special Committee for Small and Medium Businesses (SMBC), reported that the EPS bill, suggested to be admitted to the National Assembly, was suspended?
The day after becoming aware of this, JCMK asked the spokesperson to confirm the fact. MDP replied that it was not an official position of the party, but a suggestion of the Chairperson of SMBC. However, that kind of movement is nothing but a process of stepping to scrap the EPS, which was declared by the party to be enacted last August, and having been retreated little by little for the reason of economic situations.
At his press conference on January 11, the President said he was especially worried about small and medium businesses and that this policy of suspending the EPS is seemingly being used as a carrot to soothe the business before the stage of a scaled structure adjustment program. JCMK, conceding that this action of MDP is actually a ploy to scrap the EPS bill, stated in an announcement that MDP's decision should be withdrawn and a righteous policy for protection of migrant workers should be adopted.