hankyoreh

Talking to the nation for the first time since his return from the Pyongyang summit, President Roh Moo-hyun said the summit had accomplished so much that it was “hard to fit everything in the wrapping cloth (bojagi) we took with us in order to bring it all back” to Seoul. Indeed, most of the contents of the joint declaration were things that had been proposed by the South, and they include almost all of the things people in and close to the government have long talked about. What this means is that North Korea made some agonizing decisions, something that indicates that you can expect even bigger changes to come in inter-Korean relations.

It would be wrong to interpret the North’s serious decisions as being exclusively tactical. Granted, there is room to assume it is going on the offensive to somewhat pacify the stance of the international community towards it and get the South to continue its support. As you can see in the summit and the most recent round of six party talks, however, the North’s attitude goes much farther than that, because it appears to be ready to look toward resolving the nuclear issue and fundamentally changing the framework of inter-Korean and U.S.-North Korean relations so as to build the new basis it needs for survival and economic development. It is moving closer to that “strategic decision.” The South’s proposal about a peace regime, a military agenda, and a model for economic cooperation where both sides prosper will contribute to more decisions on the part of the North. And it goes without saying that the process advances reunification.

What is unfortunate is the North’s aversion to reform and opening up. President Roh returned saying that the words reform (gaehyeok) and openness (gaebang) will no longer be used at the governmental level. The problem is that there are invariably going to be limits to the effects of economic cooperation if the North does not go about persistent efforts at reform and opening up. Actually, while Pyongyang avoids even uttering either term for fear of what they could do to its regime stability, it has actually made one move after another in that direction over the past few years. It enacted the the July 1 Economic Management Improvement Measure in 2002, the Foreign Investment Law and Trade Law Amendment in 2004 and the Rason (Rajin-Sonbong) Economic and Trade Zone in April 2005. Lately, it has been actively trying to get more foreign investment. The joint declaration that comes from this summit calls for various measures to make the Gaeseong Industrial Park run more smoothly and for “preferential conditions” for expanding economic cooperation. North Korea’s dual perspective is already becoming apparent, and could become a serious obstacle as the scope and pace of economic cooperation increases.

China and Vietnam are successfully pursuing reform and openness while maintaining their systems of government. It would help the North to have clear intentions regarding reform and opening up, both domestically and to the rest of the world, in order to move away from isolation and achieve stable international relations and economic development.

Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]