hankyoreh

Nov. 25. (Photo by Kim Myoung-jin)

By Park Byong-su

The “Toward the 2013 Framework” symposium took place at Seoul Press Center on Friday under the joint organization of the Hankyoreh Foundation for Reunification and Culture, the Segyo Institute, and the Korea Peace Forum.

In a presentation on “The 2013 Framework and Strategy for Peace and National Security,” former Unification Minister Lee Jong-seok said, “Now is a time when we need a vision from the perspective that peace is the economy and welfare.”

“We need to open up the inter-Korean relations debate to more citizens and regions, using this to solve the North Korean nuclear issue, improve inter-Korean relations, and build a system of peace on the Korean Peninsula,” Lee said.

Seoul National University Professor Lee Keun said, “For North Korea policy to work properly, we need to create ideas that even anti-Communist conservatives can agree to.”

People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy Secretary General Lee Tae-ho said, “We need to take more interest in more pioneering arms controls in consideration of the potential threat to North Korea from the nuclear umbrella and South Korea’s conventional weaponry, with a military budget that is greater than North Korea's gross domestic product.”

Hanshin University Professor Lee Il-young proposed a diverse network economy among local communities, civil society, and business as a key strategy for a 2013 framework.

During a debate, Hallym University Professor Seong Kyoung-ryung said, “I acknowledge that we need a network among local communities, civil society, and business in the long run, but in the short term a change in national administrations is the most important thing.”

Kyungwon University Professor Hong Jong-hak said, “We must not repeat the experience of 1997, when we were forced to accept more neoliberalism because of the foreign exchange crisis.”

“The 2013 framework needs to build an innovation economy and use it as a driving force for new development,” Hong said.

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