Concerns Over Amendments to Commercial and Fair Trade Laws... "Corporate Opinions Should Be Heard and Discussions Held to Address Side Effects and Alternatives"
On the afternoon of the 21st, Park Yong-man, Chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, held an urgent press conference on recent economic legislation at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry building in Jung-gu, Seoul, emphasizing to the political circles, "Let's resolve this rationally through dialogue and discussion."
[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] Park Yong-man, Chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, on the 21st expressed opposition to the so-called Fair Economy 3 Acts (Commercial Act, Fair Trade Act, Financial Group Supervision Act) being pushed through legislation, saying, "Isn't the political circle closing its eyes and ears to the economy and focusing only on self-politics?"
At around 1:50 p.m. that day, Park held a press conference at the Chamber of Commerce building in Jung-gu, Seoul, and said, "In a situation where companies are struggling daily on the brink of life and death due to the aftermath of COVID-19, I don't know what the political circle is doing," adding, "Regardless of party, they are pushing bills that burden companies, leaving them surrounded on all sides."
He continued, "I am worried whether they are responding to the appeals of companies or if they are closing their eyes and ears to the economy and focusing on their own politics," and said, "Politics should move for the economy, and the result should be that the people live well, but when I feel that the economy is being used as a tool of politics, it is truly frustrating."
Regarding the current issues such as the amendments to the Commercial Act and the Fair Trade Act, and the fact that not only the government and ruling party but also the opposition party have declared their intention to push them forward, he pointed out, "Both the party leadership and the government have already expressed their intention to 'do it' first," and said, "They think there is no need to listen to the companies' side, and reaching an agreement swiftly within the political circle is neither the right way nor acceptable."
He added, "I am not opposed to all economic legislation being promoted in the National Assembly," but emphasized the need for consultation, saying, "There are problems with both the methods and procedures, so we need to gather companies' opinions, discuss the expected side effects, and reasonable alternatives to find the right path."
Park stated, "I understand the purpose of the law amendments such as improving unfair trade and preventing the arbitrary actions of major shareholders, but if you interfere and regulate only the results while leaving the motives causing the problems untouched, it will eventually cause side effects or inevitably produce ways to circumvent the law," and added, "It is preferable to resolve these issues primarily through supervision based on market economy principles."
He continued, "Despite repeated opinions and persuasion from the business community, I cannot shake the feeling that they are being ignored like the wind passing by," emphasizing, "We must thoroughly discuss issues such as conflicts between amended regulations, devices to block expected side effects, and issues that can be resolved through norms before the law."
Park particularly said, "Once each party such as the political circle and the business community expresses their support or opposition in advance, proper discussion cannot proceed," and added, "The positions of large corporations and small and medium enterprises differ, and opinions inevitably vary depending on ownership and governance structures. If the law is made focusing on one side, side effects will occur. We want to gather diverse voices and find the most reasonable consensus."
Park plans to visit the National Assembly on the 22nd to meet with the leadership of both ruling and opposition parties to repeatedly convey these opinions.
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