My fellow Koreans at home and abroad, distinguished guests, and expatriates in Korea,

About 90 years ago, our ancestors, who had then lost their country, established a government in exile in Shanghai, showing the world that Korea was an independent country that would not tolerate being governed by foreign forces.

And 64 years ago today, we saw the entire nation overwhelmed with joy as we welcomed our independence. We gathered together and became one in inexpressible euphoria.

Sixty-one years ago today, the national flag, which represents the pride of the nation, was flying high in the wind as the inaugural President, Syngman Rhee, declared the establishment of our nation, his voice slightly trembling with an overwhelming feeling of joy.

Here today, as we commemorate the anniversary of liberation, I would like to once again pay respect to the people of Korea that have made the country what it is today.

Korean citizens are heroes who have always discovered hope and opportunities in the bleakest moments over our 60 years of modern history. Every single Korean is a hero. The spirit of our ancestors who dedicated themselves to recovering our country, establishing our country and defending our country still lives on today and is probably one of the most valuable things we have inherited.

My fellow Koreans,

Today I would like to shed new light on how Koreans made a history of miracles within the larger frame of world history. In 1948, we established the Republic of Korea as a new member of the international community. But we were still a small country then. Barely two years after the founding of modern Korea, the nation suffered the Korean War. We were at the receiving end of help from other countries, and Korea became synonymous with war and poverty.

Where are we now in 2009?

The nation now stands side by side with other leading countries. Korea is no longer just a small speck on the global scene. It has become a major player. Korean-made cars and electronic goods are gaining accolades all around the world. More than 400 items produced by small and medium-sized companies in Korea now match world standards. Korea has become a country that all nations around the world want to have closer ties with.

The 21st century is seeing changes in the world. It is often referred to as an age of globalization. It is also an age that puts emphasis on freedom and a green environment. A single nation’s interests can no longer be viewed in isolation from the universal interests of the global community.

Diplomacy and economic matters go hand in hand; and domestic politics and international politics affect each other. Trying to do things on our own no longer works. We are now at a point where we are required to write a new history against the backdrop of this increasingly interdependent world.

In the late 19th century, Yu Gil-jun  said that we should not be passive in opening up the country, but rather should take a more proactive role. Likewise, the 21st century calls on us to take on a more proactive role on the global stage.

In fact, this is why my Administration has exerted utmost efforts to add a more global aspect to our policies and take on more of a leadership role on the international scene. I am happy to report now that we have seen those efforts reap some good results. The Korea-US alliance is stronger than ever, and Korea has become a true friend to many countries. Korea will soon become a country that has Free Trade Agreements with numerous countries, whose population in total would make us practically the only country that has FTAs with over half of the world’s population. Such a focus on international relations has led us to join the group of leading countries in overcoming the financial crisis that hit the world lately. We are also the chair of the next G20 Meeting and have been leading the discussions on the issues of green growth and free trade. The Spirit of Independence has led us to the Korea that we see today, and the Korea we see today is heading towards becoming an even greater Republic.

Becoming a Korea that firmly marks its place on the global scene requires competence in aligning our national interests with those of the global community. It also requires a fine sense of balance and an ability to put the complex interests involving the region and beyond in perspective. We also need to proactively present a new vision for the future, one that would sketch out the history of human civilization in the 21st century. Respecting universal values and an international order that regard the global community as one big family is what would be both practical and engaging to all.

My fellow Koreans,

Korea is a strong presence in the world. It is also referred to as a country that represents hope and unlimited possibilities. However, looking inside at what is going on within the country, we realize that all is not that rosy. We have paid a high price in establishing democracy, in weakening the deeply entrenched authoritarianism, while improving fairness and enhancing transparency in Government, but we still have some way to go. Not only is the peninsula divided into two, there are also conflicts among regions and between management and labor. All these conflicts are playing out in the extreme.

But I would not like to view this as entirely negative. If we can only transform this dynamic energy that is expressed in the form of conflict into a more positive energy, it would mean that we would have greater potential for progress.

The task that lies ahead of us today is to overcome this division and conflict and to integrate the Korean people and society into one. This is where a practical, centrist pragmatism comes in. Centrist pragmatism does not mean a hasty move to compromise between left and right. Rather, it intends to shed new light on the spirit of our Constitution—to respect the values of freedom and democracy as well as market economics and to take them to the next level. 

Centrist pragmatism does not mean a mathematical average, but a balance between ideals and reality. It is about putting the people first, ensuring that national progress leads to personal happiness.

Being practical, on the other hand, is the method through which we put the idea of centrist pragmatism to work. It is removing oneself from hollow mantras and slogans that do not resonate with real day-to-day life. It is about bringing down the barriers created by prejudice that color the way we view the world. It is about diagnosing issues in a creative light and coming up with creative ways to deal with them.

We easily fall victim to an either/or way of thinking, of dividing the world into “us” and “them.” This has caused us to live in a world where there is no margin for understanding.

The centrist pragmatism that I am suggesting takes freedom and equality, democracy and industrialization, growth and welfare, the world and Korea not as mutually exclusive but as existing in harmony.

Green growth, in fact, is one of the most important visions that has grown out of such an idea. We have already applied the idea of green growth to our economy and see the results that what is better for the economy has proven to be better for the environment and vice versa. Last June, the OECD officially adopted this Korean initiative as an official ministerial declaration. The importance of this method is recognized by the world.

There are people who say that a “free” society connotes a rather cold aloofness. But what I mean when I say a “free society” is a society that has a warm heart—a society where the efficiency of the market economy is recognized, but also where care is given to those who are most economically vulnerable.

Some say that Korean democracy is swamped in anger. But we aim to make it into a democracy that is more mature in handling conflict, where conversation and logical means are respected.

If a warm-hearted free society is based on ethics and responsibility, then a mature democracy would be based on the rule of law.

In order to successfully overcome the divisions and conflicts within our society, I will form a special committee for social cohesion, which will be directly under my supervision.

My fellow Koreans,

What is clear to us is that there is no way we can become an advanced nation without achieving sound politics. Over the past months, I have been listening to the leaders of many social groups in Korea, including senior politicians and religious leaders. Everyone had different diagnoses and suggested different prescriptions, but there was one common theme in what they said: Korean politics must change.

I will take these comments to heart and will make even greater efforts to achieve social integration. But I would also like to urge you, the people of Korea, to play a more active role in bringing Korean politics to world standards.

My fellow Koreans,

I believe the key to making our politics reach world standards is in making it more transparent and productive. It is true that transparency has increased in this field throughout the years. But we still have a long way to go.

I was the first Korean presidential candidate ever that did not receive money illegally from any corporation and ended the vicious cycle that had been going on in Korean politics till then. I would also once again like to take this opportunity to pledge that I will never take any illegal funds.

In addition, I will never tolerate any of my relatives accepting favors and will make sure that this pledge is carried out by reinforcing the supervisory system. There needs to be more efforts to root out any form of corruption in the public sector. Special attention will be given to eradicating corruption that involves abuses of power and corruptive practices that have been established as the norm in certain regions.

Productive politics puts the people and the running of the country at its center. Of course, at the core of the democratic system are elections, but a sad fact is that Korea simply has too many elections, one after another, and every time we have an election we see a deepening of conflicts between parties, regions and social classes. There is not a single year that passes without seeing a national election. These frequent elections oftentimes serve as an obstacle to running the country. It’s about time we have a serious talk about reducing the number of elections to a reasonable level.

At the root of unproductive politics is regionalism. The current election system worsens regionalism and encourages elected politicians to focus only on regional interests. This, no doubt, undermines political productivity. The administrative districts that were established some 100 years ago are only serving to reinforce this phenomenon and have become an obstacle to efficient regional development.

If we sincerely want to eradicate negative regionalism, we must change the electoral system. No matter how much we talk about rooting out regionalism, if the election system remains as it is, pulling everyone together would be a far-fetched dream. It would be like trying to cure a patient in need of surgery with mere painkillers. Everybody sees the problem, yet the problem has persisted for a long time. There is a need to redefine electoral jurisdictions so that the members of the National Assembly can focus on what they are supposed to do instead of paying excessive attention to regional interests the way they have done so far.

On various occasions, I have emphasized the need to redefine electoral jurisdictions. The opposition camp has expressed its own voice on the need for such reform. At the upcoming session of the National Assembly’s Special Committee on Reorganizing Administrative Districts, my Administration will explain its stance and will respect whatever the National Assembly decides. A concrete action plan must be laid out at the National Assembly’s upcoming regular session. Furthermore, the Administration intends to support those regions that will integrate themselves voluntarily, in the hopes of speeding the process up.

Political reform is no easy task. I would like to urge both the ruling and opposition camps to view the issues from the perspective of the people. It might be a bit of a challenge, but please look beyond the interests of just the party and consider what is good for the country’s future.

Political reform is only possible when there is a consensus between the ruling and opposition camps as well as a public consensus. Based on this, we might be able to agree on establishing a special committee to accelerate reform, if necessary.

My fellow Koreans,

I mentioned in my New Year’s Address that I would be running the Government this year under the assumption that we are in an economic emergency. I also promised that I would make sure the policies formulated would help ease the pain that people feel from the worsened economic conditions. We are in the process of delivering on this promise.

Late last year, for the first time ever in the history of the Korean Government, I received briefings earlier than scheduled from various ministries and agencies. The Administration was also one of the first in the world to carry out the fiscal measures needed in such an economically challenging time. Every week I convened an Emergency Economic Meeting with senior cabinet members that helped us successfully weather the turmoil that hit the world.

But we should not fall into complacency. We need to make further efforts to spur employment, investment and domestic demand. The Government is paying close attention to the working class in particular, since they are likely the last ones to feel the positive effects of an economic turnaround. The slogan under which we are working, “A warm society for the working class, growth of the middle class” expresses the policy goals that will be consistently pursued throughout the duration of this Administration and beyond.

My Administration has put in place various measures to help the working class get through these hard times. These include such things as providing help to mothers in need of child care, to job seekers and to college students who are having a hard time paying tuition. It is also working on a housing policy that allows working-class citizens, who so far have not been able to own a home, to see their dreams come true. Whether they are street vendors or contract laborers, those who are in dire need of a little cash will also be seeing their worries eased. The five indices that will let us gauge the quality of life for the working class, namely, income, employment, education, housing and safety, will be reviewed regularly.

My fellow Koreans,

To make Korea a more warm-hearted place, a certain noblesse oblige—a sense of obligation and responsibility to those who have less than others—is required. When I visited Oxford University in the United Kingdom a long time ago, there was a bronze panel where the names of students who had died in action in World War II were inscribed. Most of those who had their names there were the children of the British upper class. Even nowadays, the world leaders that receive the most respect are those who are wholeheartedly involved in volunteer work. We, too, need to establish a culture where working and sacrificing for others is a prerequisite to become a leader.

According to Korean tradition, helping others out of pure altruism is one of the five blessings of life.  Kim Man-deok, who was one of the richest women on Jeju Island some 200 years ago, offered up her entire assets when a severe drought hit the region for four years, thus saving thousands of lives. Kim Jeong-hui  noted that this act “had shed light on this world with grace.”

Volunteering and sharing are a form of granting blessings and showing love. Happiness may begin with love, but is completed by sharing it. If we sincerely envision a society filled with happiness, volunteering and sharing should become more commonplace in our daily lives. I hope that the idea of volunteering and sharing does not stop at being just an idea, but something that is acted upon.

My fellow Koreans,

I would also like to take this opportunity to urge North Korea once again to realize that nuclear weapons cannot guarantee its security, but rather are an obstacle to a better future for them.

I hope the North and South will have a candid and frank dialogue about what it will take for North Korea to give up nuclear weapons. I hope to find a way that allows North Korea to defend itself, but also allows both the North and South to prosper together. When the North shows such determination, my Administration will come up with a new peace initiative for the Korean Peninsula. We will actively seek an international cooperative program to ensure economic development in the North to enhance the quality of life for the North Korean people. We will establish a high-level meeting between the two Koreas to realize a common economic community in the coming years and will pursue development projects focused on five major areas—the economy, education, finance, infrastructure and quality of life—in cooperation with other countries and international organizations.

Along with the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, a reduction in conventional weapons must also be discussed. It is unprecedented for such numbers of heavy artillery and troops to be amassed along the narrow four-kilometer-wide DMZ for more than half a century. How can we possibly talk about reconciliation and cooperation when we are on trigger alert with millions of weapons aimed at each other? Only when we reduce the number of weapons and troops and redeploy them to the rear, will we be able to take a step forward to genuine peace. In addition, if the North and South reduce conventional weapons and troops, enormous resources will be freed up to improve the economies on both sides. Now is the time for the North and South to come to the table and talk about these issues. I would like to say clearly that my Administration is ready to start talks and cooperation with the North over all issues between us, at any time, at any level.

My fellow Koreans,

Let us take this opportunity, as we mark the 90th anniversary of the establishment of our government in exile, the 64th anniversary of liberation and the 61st anniversary of the founding of the Republic of Korea, to make a promise to ourselves to make this country a strong presence in the world.

Korea is now just about to enter the throngs of advanced countries. The Lee Myung-bak Administration will do its best to lay the foundation for a country standing tall in the world.

What we envision is a country that makes happiness an achievable reality for everyone. What we envision is a society that has at its foundation ethics, values and consideration for others. We do not just aim for a society that is abundant in materialistic terms. We aim for one that is mature enough to look beyond that. Being divided amongst ourselves makes us smaller, while coming together makes us greater. If we cannot overcome the divisions and conflict among ourselves, we will not be able to move forward. Only when we take our neighbor’s hand with an open heart can we see a bigger, greater Korea.

Let us take this opportunity to make a promise to ourselves, a promise that we will move towards a greater Korea, one that will make a mark on the 21st century. I believe it is an achievable goal.

Thank you.