PRESIDENT ROH'S CABINET: CHANGING FACES

C O N F I D E N T I A L SEOUL 002877 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/19/2011 TAGS: PGOV KS SUBJECT: PRESIDENT ROH'S CABINET: CHANGING FACES REF: SEOUL 2576 Classified By: A/DCM Joseph Y. Yun. Reasons 1.4 (b/d). -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) This is an update on the incumbent ROK cabinet members and possible changes in the coming weeks. Amidst growing negative public sentiment toward the Blue House, President Roh Moo-hyun conducted a reshuffle of thirteen vice minister-level posts, including Vice Minister of Planning and Budget and Justice Minister, last week. In the aftermath of a controversial resignation, a vacancy remains for the position of Education Minister and a possible change of Minister of National Defense and Minister of Foreign Affairs is in the picture for the near future. END SUMMARY. PRIME MINISTER: HAN MYEONG-SOOK -------------- ¶2. (C) Prime Minister Han was appointed to office in April 2006 with the Uri Party's strong support. Though she has been head of the Environment and Gender Equality Ministries, she has been criticized for her limited experience and her Ministry's delayed response in administering state affairs. Regarding the recent resignation of the Education Minister, PM Han recommended to President Roh that disgraced minister, Kim Byoung-joon, should be asked to resign. However, President Roh seemingly ignored her advice and delayed on the matter until Kim chose to resign. FOREIGN MINISTER TO UN SECRETARY GENERAL? : BAN KI-MOON -------------- -------------- ¶3. (C) Ban Ki-moon, a career foreign service bureaucrat and Minister of Foreign Affairs since January 2004 announced in February 2006 that he would be running for UN Secretary General. According to a straw poll taken in late July, Ban placed first with 12 votes in favor and 1 opposed. If elected, Ban would begin his tenure at the UN in January 2007, meaning that a new Foreign Minister would have to replace him. According to media pundits, as there are no likely candidates for FM among Roh's immediate circle, the tradition of naming a career diplomat with experience in the US would likely continue. National Security Council (NSC) chief Song Min-soon is among the widely mentioned names to replace Ban. UNLIKE HIS PREDECESSORS: DEFENSE MINISTER YOON KWANG-UNG -------------- -------------- ¶4. (C) Last week, seventeen former defense ministers urged current Defense Minister Yoon and President Roh to suspend 
negotiations with the USG to regain wartime operational control. In a press conference on the day after meeting with the former defense chiefs, Yoon publicly ignored the advice of his predecessors, claiming that they did not have up-to-date knowledge on the ROK's current security situation. In response, some GNP lawmakers have called for Yoon's resignation, but this time around many analysts believe that he wants to resign. JUSTICE MINISTER: PRESIDENT ROH CONCEDES DEFEAT -------------- -- ¶5. (SBU) President Roh selected Kim Sung-ho on August 8 to become the new Justice Minister over his long-time confidante and favored choice, Moon Jae-in, due to intense opposition from Uri party members who were concerned about rising negative public opinion over the President's personnel decisions. PM Han Myeong-sook is said to have recommended Kim, a public prosecutor and former secretary general of the Korea Independent Commission Against Corruption (KICAC) to the position. See Ref A. EDUCATION MINISTER: VACANT AFTER A RESIGNATION -------------- - ¶6. (SBU) Only thirteen days after taking office at the Ministry of Education, Kim Byoung-joon submitted his resignation in early August amid public pressure and accusations of plagiarism and dishonorable academic practices. In response to the interference by political parties, Blue House representatives relayed the President's displeasure at the growing influence of bipartisan politics on cabinet personnel decisions. Meanwhile, the Blue House announced that it has begun a screening process to select a new nominee. MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMY -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Kwon Oh-kyu, a career bureaucrat who formerly served in the Blue House as Presidential Chief Secretary for National Policy and Senior Secretary for Economic Policy, was appointed in July 2006 as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Economy. Kwon has been a strong supporter of the U.S.-ROK FTA, and has pointedly stated that an FTA with China cannot precede an FTA with the US. He has referred to the U.S.-ROK FTA as a strategic partnership, which is a win-win for both countries. MINISTER OF UNIFICATION -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Minister of Unification, Lee Jong-Seok, who was appointed February 2006, is also Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National Security Council. MINISTER OF HEALTH AND WELFARE -------------- ¶9. (C) The Minister of Health and Welfare, Rhyu Si-min, has emerged as a controversial figure in U.S.-ROK FTA negotiations by pushing for changes to national health insurance reimbursement of pharmaceuticals. Both U.S. and Korean drug manufacturers fear that Rhyu's stated goal of cost containment will come at their expense, and will mean implicit rationing of patient access to medicines. Rhyu is also an unwavering Roh loyalist. His enthusiastic and uncompromising support of Roh has bought him many enemies in the National Assembly, including members of his own party, many of whom opposed his appointment to the cabinet. A prominent leader of an anti-government group in the 1980s, he is considered by some to be a sleeper 2007 presidential candidate. Rhyu, who is recognized for his oratory skills, attempted to block the GNP from impeaching President Roh in ¶2004. OTHER MINISTERS IN BRIEF -------------- ¶10. (SBU) Kim Woo-sik, former president of Yonsei University and former Chief of Staff to the President is another Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and Technology since February 2006. Minister of Government Administration since March 2006 is Lee Yong-sup who was former Senior Secretary to the President for Innovative Management and head of the National Tax Office. Kim Myung-gon, appointed March 2006, is a former movie actor and current Minister of Culture and Tourism. A first-term legislator who was granted a proportional representation (PR) seat in 2004, Park Hong-Soo is Minister of Agriculture and Forestry since January 2005. Chung Sye-kyun, Minister of Commerce, Industry, and Energy is a three-term lawmaker and served as a key policy maker during Roh's presidential campaign. Appointed March 2006, the Minister of Information and Communication is Rho Jun-hyong, a career public servant who has been with the Ministry for over thirty years. Lee Chi-beom, Minister of Environment, is a former environmental activist and long-time aide of President Roh who served as advisor on civil affairs during the 2004 presidential campaign. Minister of Labor, Lee Sang-soo, is a former human rights lawyer who was elected to the 13th, 15th and 16th National Assemblies, but lost his seat in 2004 due to allegations of illegal campaign finance. Minister of Construction and Transportation, Choo Byung-jik is a career public servant who has served the ministry for more than twenty years. Kim Sung-jin, a former financial director of the Korea Economic Development Organization (KEDO) and former aide to the Blue House Policy Chief is Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries. Minister of Gender Equality and Family is Jang Ha-jin, a former professor of Korea University and long-time researcher at the Korea Development Institute (KDI). COMMENT -------------- ¶11. (C) The power to nominate cabinet members has been the exclusive domain of the president, but President Roh Moo-hyun's weakening status may force him to be more attuned to pressures from political parties and the South Korean public. In the nomination of the new Justice Minister, President Roh's own party members demonstrated that they will not always support his decisions. More importantly, the President's position as a "lame duck" is becoming increasingly evident to President Roh himself. Liberal newspaper OhMyNews reported on August 18 that in a meeting with policymakers President Roh allegedly said, "People around me do not listen to what I say. There is nothing I can do and my tenure is essentially over." Many pundits and lawmakers think the pro-forma confirmation process, which requires a public hearing but is not a formalized process that takes place in front of the legislature, should be revised to resemble the American system to give way to a more clearly defined and cooperative relationship between the executive and legislative branches. END COMMENT. STANTON