hankyoreh

With Minister of Unification Hyun In-taek has been replaced on Tuesday, attention is focusing on whether there will be a change in the government's current approach on North Korea. President Lee Myung-bak named a close aide Yu Woo-ik, a former South Korean ambassador to China, as new unification minister in a Cabinet reshuffle. Hyun was named a special presidential advisor for unification affairs.

Four opposition parties, including the Democratic Party (DP), submitted a proposal to the National Assembly for the dismissal of Hyun, who is considered representative of the Lee administration’s ultra-hardline on North Korea. Ruling Grand National Party (GNP) Chairman Hong Joon-pyo and other members of the party leadership have also issued repeated calls to the Cheong Wa Dae (the presidential office in South Korea or Blue House) to replace Hyun.　

The Cabinet reorganization also included three other ministers: Rim Che-min, minister of the Prime Minister‘s Office, was designated as Health and Welfare Minister; Choe Kwang-sik, head of the Cultural Heritage Administration, as Culture, Sports and Tourism Minister; GNP Lawmaker Kim Kum-lae as Gender Equality and Family Affairs Minister.

Seoul prosecutors plan to summon the wife of Seoul’s schools superintendent Kwak No-hyun for questioning on this Wednesday on allegations that her husband paid off a rival candidate to bow out of race for the post in last year’s elections.

The prosecution also said that they will call in two other officials today suspected of having been involved in the delivery of money from the top Seoul educator to Seoul National University professor Park Myoung-gee. The subpoena comes several days after prosecutors made public that they have secured evidence to prove Kwak’s illegal payoff in last year’s race.　

(Arirang News)

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