Parties collide over US beef at FTA hearing
2008/05/13 Yonhap
Parties collide over U.S. beef at FTA hearing
By Shin Hae-in
SEOUL, May 13 (Yonhap) — South Korea’s political parties collided over the scheduled import of U.S. beef Tuesday, as opposition parties continued their move to link the beef accord with ratification of a free trade deal with Washington.
The ruling Grand National Party has been striving to ratify the Seoul-Washington free trade agreement (FTA) within the term of the current National Assembly, which ends late this month, to give impetus to the economic initiatives of the new government launched in February.
But opposition parties have been against early ratification of the FTA and determined to link the issue with nullification of the April 18 beef accord with the U.S.
"There will be no settlement of the FTA unless the government agrees to delay resumption of the beef imports and reopen negotiations with the U.S.," said Sohn Hak-kyu, chairman of the main opposition United Democratic Party.
The Assembly’s foreign affairs committee held a hearing on the FTA Tuesday, as public opposition to the beef deal is growing on concerns of mad cow disease.
Reopening Seoul’s market to American beef was one of the four preconditions for negotiating an FTA with Washington. Former President Roh Moo-hyun accepted three of the preconditions.
Both the U.S. and South Korean legislatures are split over whether to ratify the deal, which was struck last June, under the Roh government.
Seoul agreed to reopen its market this month to U.S. beef from cattle younger than 30 months. The 30-month ban will eventually be removed altogether on the condition of toughened animal feed regulations.
While pledging to suspend imports if new health threats are found in U.S. beef, the South Korean government has ruled out the possibility of delaying the May 15 government notification to resume beef imports or immediately renegotiating the deal with Washington.
"We cannot seek renegotiation (merely) due to public opinion," said Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon, who had been the top FTA negotiator, during Tuesday’s hearing. "Scientific proof is necessary to nullify the deal."
The ruling party pressed the opponents to cooperate in settlement of the FTA.
"Opposition parties must halt the action to link the beef deal with the FTA," said ruling party floor leader Ahn Sang-soo. "Let’s make decisions based on what is best for the country."
During Tuesday’s parliamentary hearing, opposition legislators also grilled government officials over a recent discovery of a mistranslation of the latest U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) rules on animal feed.
The rules, announced April 25, prohibit "the use of the entire carcass of cattle not inspected and passed for human consumption, unless the cattle are less than 30 months of age, or the brains and spinal cords have been removed."
Critics claim that this implies cattle less than 30 months old can be used in animal feed without having to be inspected. The same applies for cattle older than 30 months that have been stripped of high-risk materials.
Animal feed is suspected to be a major cause of mad cow disease.
The South Korean government has been attempting to assure the public of the safety of U.S. beef, citing stronger FDA rules on animal feed.
Cheong Wa Dae has admitted the mistake, saying it was "regretful, but does not alter the essence of the beef deal."
"The government has fooled the people completely by agreeing on a weaker restriction of animal feed for U.S. cattle," said Kang Chang-il of the main opposition party. "The mad cow issue and the FTA cannot be dealt separately. The deal should never be ratified until the concerns of mad cow disease are completely resolved."
The free trade deal has been billed as the most significant event in South Korea-U.S. relations since the two countries signed their military accord in 1953. Economically, it is expected to boost two-way trade — already worth US$79 billion a year — by as much as $20 billion in the coming years.
