[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] The Gwangju Environmental Movement Federation has directly criticized Park Juseon, the Minsheng Party candidate for the 4.15 general election in Dong and Nam Districts (Eul), Gwangju Metropolitan City, for his pledge to install a Mudeungsan cable car.
On the 9th, the Gwangju Environmental Movement Federation issued a press release stating, “Installing a cable car within a national park is not only impossible but has already been openly proven to lack economic and environmental feasibility,” adding, “The argument that it will attract more tourists and help revitalize the local economy does not fit Mudeungsan, and the ‘attractions and places to stay’ that candidate Park talks about are contrary to the cable car.”
They continued, “The number of visitors to Mudeungsan ranks high (2nd to 4th) among the 22 national parks nationwide, and the number of visitors has been steadily increasing since its designation as a national park,” asserting, “On the contrary, there is a strong demand to limit the number of visitors for sustainable conservation.”
They also said, “There is a social consensus in the local community that the conservation and restoration of Mudeungsan are urgent, and discussions on relocating the military base at the summit and broadcasting transmission towers, as well as restoration, have been ongoing with the central government including Gwangju City,” criticizing, “It is regrettable that a candidate with a four-term National Assembly member background is rekindling the already discarded logic of installing a Mudeungsan cable car.”
Furthermore, they stated, “Candidate Park claims that the protection movement should shift from a passive protection that preserves nature as it is to an active protection that develops, manages, and conserves it in an eco-friendly way, but this contradicts the purpose of national park designation,” emphasizing, “The purpose of national park designation is to systematically manage and conserve natural assets that have absolute value and must be preserved.”
The organization said, “In other words, it is intended to protect natural assets from development or damage disguised under various justifications such as eco-friendly packaging,” stressing, “Candidate Park has only revealed his misunderstanding and ignorance of national parks.”
They added, “It is also inappropriate to claim cable car installation under the guise of measures for the mobility-impaired such as the disabled while having an anti-environmental development purpose,” urging, “Candidate Park should withdraw his claim for the Mudeungsan cable car.”
Meanwhile, candidate Park Juseon held a press conference at the Gwangju Metropolitan Council on the 7th, pledging to “install a cable car on Mudeungsan.”
Candidate Park said, “Gwangju should leap forward as an Asian cultural hub city and an international human rights city, but its tourism industry infrastructure is too insufficient,” adding, “The Mudeungsan cable car will establish itself as a landmark that helps revitalize the economies of Dong and Nam Districts along with the National Asian Culture Complex.”
He also claimed, “The Mudeungsan cable car has been discussed since 2007 but has not been implemented,” and argued, “Environmental groups oppose it citing environmental protection, but the concept of environmental protection should shift from a passive protection movement that preserves nature to an active protection movement that develops, manages, and conserves nature in an eco-friendly way.”
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