Gwangju Mayor Lee Yong-seop: "Kia Motors Labor and Management Must Resolve Issues with a Spirit of Coexistence"

Toward the People Power Party: "Please Strengthen Efforts to Amend the Special Act on the Asia Culture Center City"

Child Protection Zone Traffic Accidents: "Shift the Road Traffic System to Focus on Pedestrian Safety"

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] Lee Yong-seop, Mayor of Gwangju Metropolitan City, addressed the partial strike by the Kia Motors labor union, the revision of the Special Act on the Asia Culture Centered City, and a recent traffic accident at a crosswalk in a school zone.

On the 25th at 1:30 PM, through an online comprehensive briefing, Mayor Lee urged the Kia Motors family to take the lead in realizing Gwangju as a city where labor is respected, a good place for business, a city of labor-management coexistence, and industrial peace, regarding the partial strike by the Kia Motors labor union starting that day for three days.

He continued, “The labor and management of Kia Motors, which play a pivotal role in the Gwangju regional economy, have failed to reach an agreement during wage negotiations and have entered a union strike. This has not only disrupted automobile production but also dealt a direct blow to about 270 local partner companies, severely threatening the livelihoods of citizens.” He added, “I ask labor and management to continue wage and collective bargaining through dialogue and compromise in the spirit of coexistence rather than conflict and struggle.”

Regarding the revision of the Special Act on the Asia Culture Centered City, he emphasized the need for the People Power Party to lend more support.

Mayor Lee stated, “Kim Jong-in, the emergency committee chairman of the People Power Party, and Joo Ho-young, the floor leader, have visited Gwangju several times, emphasizing ‘walking together with Gwangju’ and promised active cooperation in revising the Special Act.” However, he explained, “It is regrettable that the ‘Special Act on the Establishment of the National Asia Culture Centered City’ (hereinafter referred to as the Special Act revision) for the normalization of the National Asia Culture Center has not even been brought to the bill subcommittee due to opposition from the People Power Party.”

He emphasized, “The normalization of the National Asia Culture Center and the Asia Culture Centered City development project are long-cherished projects reflecting the aspirations of local residents. I earnestly ask for support for the Special Act revision, the May 18 Special Act revision, and the special law revision for the relocation of the military airport to empower Gwangju’s development. Only then can the national unity emphasized by the People Power Party begin.”

Regarding the recent traffic accident in a school zone in Unam-dong, Buk-gu, he promised to “transform the city traffic system focusing on pedestrian safety.”

The mayor revealed, “There was a sharp disagreement over installing traffic lights at the crosswalk where the accident occurred and closing the crosswalk, which is the biggest issue. However, we reached a resident consensus to first take four measures: closing the crosswalk, installing fences separating the roadway and sidewalks, installing CCTV for speeding and illegal parking enforcement, and improving the visibility of school zone markings.”

However, he added, “Whether to maintain the crosswalk and install traffic lights will be finally decided after reviewing the implementation results for three months and collecting residents’ opinions again. Taking this incident as an opportunity, we will completely shift the city road traffic system to focus on pedestrian safety. In particular, we will conduct intensive inspections of all school zones to identify and address risk factors and problems.”