Policy Forum

Cheon Seongwhun, a senior research fellow at the Korea Institute for National Unification (KINU), writes, “the Obama administration is likely to ask for stronger verification measures than what was agreed during the Bush administration… The new administration will regard material sampling as an indispensable condition for effective verification, and even push for inspections on undeclared facilities, the nuclear testing site, and explosive testing facilities which were practically exempted from verification under the current agreement.”

Jia Xijin, Associate Professor at the NGO Research Center at Tsinghua University, and Zhao Yusi, Project Assistant of NGO Research Center at Tsinghua University, write, “governmental reform, the development of the market economy, the differentiation of social stratum and interest patterns, the speeding up of public participation and political democracy, as well as the rapid strides in communications using the Internet and mobile devises, have increased the needs of citizens for social services and their ability to form voluntary associations. Under these conditions non-profit organizations in China are becoming more active and developing vigorously.”

Kim Yeoncheol, Director of the Hankyoreh Peace Institute (http://koreahana.net/sub05_01_1.htm), writes, “If the government misses the time to engage the North, it will only be more time consuming and expensive to compensate later… The government should think about its long term future… The tension in the inter-Korean relationship is becoming more intense. If we don’t act now there will be only more regret for the wasted time and lost opportunities in the future.”

Liao Ran and Chen Ke, students at Solbridge International School of Business in Daejeon, Korea, write, “Although the ultimate impact of the Daejeon Green Growth Forum’s efforts has yet to be seen, it is a tribute to Korea’s capacity for innovation that this environmental forum has come to play such a central role within less than a year of its establishment.”

Suk Hi Kim, Editor of North Korean Review (www.northkoreanreview.com), writes, “PUST is North Korea’s first institution of higher education founded, operated, and funded by associations and people outside the country… PUST plans to train talented young North Korean people in the fields of information and communication technology, industrial management, agriculture, food and life science, architecture, joinery and construction, and public health. The major challenge that faces the university is related to maintaining its financial resources.”

Sun-won Park, Visiting Fellow at the Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies at the Brookings Institution, writes, “Policy coordination between Washington and Seoul is essential in order to achieve the denuclearization of North Korea, diplomatic normalization between the U.S. and the DPRK, and the establishment of a peace arrangement through talks between the directly related parties. But the notion of policy coordination must not be used as a certain party’s justification for sabotaging cooperation with the new U.S. plan for the Korean peninsula.”

Deng Guosheng, Professor of School of Public Management and Policy at Tsinghua University, writes, “Surveys show that at present the Chinese people trust the government the most, followed by businesses, then civil society organizations Currently Chinese civil society organizations seriously lack credibility, which hinders their development. Assessments may be one of the most important means to restore public confidence in civil organizations.”

I. Introduction Yu Jianrong, Research/Professor of Institute of Rural Development at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, and Yu Debao, Doctoral Student at Peking University, write, “In a time with so much social conflict, little contradictions can trigger mass unrest, affecting the whole society. If such incidents cannot be solved properly, both society and the […]

Deng Guosheng, Professor of School of Public Management and Policy at Tsinghua University, writes, “Surveys show that at present the Chinese people trust the government the most, followed by businesses, then civil society organizations Currently Chinese civil society organizations seriously lack credibility, which hinders their development. Assessments may be one of the most important means to restore public confidence in civil organizations.”

Tim Savage, Deputy Director of the Seoul Office of the Nautilus Institute, writes, “China and South Korea cannot meet in a smoke-filled room and decide the fate of North Korea. But the more they can overcome their own mutual distrust, the less likely it becomes that whatever does happen in North Korea will lead to a broader regional crisis.”