[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 17]
[Senate]
[Pages 24256-24257]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



            PRESIDENT KIM DAE JUNG AND THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE

  Mr. BINGAMAN. Mr. President, I rise today to congratulate the 
President of South Korea, Kim Dae Jung, for winning the Nobel Peace 
Prize. This is a man who truly deserves this honor, as there are few 
men in the world today who have worked so tirelessly for democracy and 
peace in East Asia. Like so many of the outstanding men of our time, 
President Kim's life reads something like a novel, from his early 
childhood as a farmer's son on a small Korean island, to his criticism 
of the Japanese colonial rule, to his constant fight against 
dictatorship in South Korea, to his relentless pursuit of a 
constructive engagement policy with North Korea. No part of his path to 
the present has been easy, and, he came perilously close to losing his 
life on several occasions. The stories that are told about his near 
death experiences at the hands of the military regime in South Korea, 
and the intervention by the United States to save his life, are 
legendary in his country. He has been accused of nearly every possible 
political crime, from subversion to treason. But he has persisted and 
has succeeded, this in spite of the formidable odds against him. 
Significantly, South Korea has achieved its status as one of the 
world's most stable democratic countries because of his efforts, and it 
is appropriate he should be recognized by the Norwegian Nobel Committee 
for the impact he has made over the years.
  As my colleagues know, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright arrived 
in North Korea earlier this week, her stated goal being to improve 
relations

[[Page 24257]]

with that country. This follows the trip to North Korea by President 
Kim, the trip to this country by North Korean Vice Marshal Jo Myong 
Rok, and the normalization of relations between North Korea and both 
Great Britain and Germany--all of which occurred in the last six months 
and are a direct result of the ``sunshine policy'' that President Kim 
introduced when he entered office. Needless to say, since the 
initiation of the policy he has been roundly condemned by government 
officials and analysts alike as an idealist who did not entirely 
understand what was at stake in the region. Recall it was only in June 
of 1999 that North and South Korea fought a battle off the South Korean 
coast. But President Kim has persevered and, as a result, has brought 
the region closer to peace and stability than any time in the last 
fifty years. This is no small accomplishment.
  There is no doubt that South Korea has some serious challenges to 
face in the immediate future. Looking at the South Korean economy, 
although it has recovered substantially from the 1997 financial crisis, 
it is again showing signs of instability. The reforms that were 
considered necessary by President Kim for a sustained transformation--
financial, corporate, and governmental--have not yet fully occurred, 
raising the possibility of another crisis down the road. It is also 
true that most of the rapprochement that has taken place between South 
Korea and North Korea is symbolic in nature, leading to hard questions 
concerning what concrete actions will be undertaken to increase 
cooperation and decrease tensions in the region.
  But hopefully the Nobel Peace Prize will provide President Kim with 
additional leverage for the policies his country has been pursuing, and 
through greater national and international consensus, he will find a 
path to the desired end of peace and prosperity in the region. There is 
no doubt that remarkable steps forward have been taken by all those 
involved, and I remain optimistic that change can occur. Before she 
left North Korea, Secretary Albright stated that there were ``many 
towering peaks ahead'' in the process. This is, no doubt, true. 
Pragmatic and reciprocal confidence-building mechanisms will be 
required to convince all the parties involved that the peace process 
should move forward. But it is also true that the prospects for 
cooperation are brighter than ever before. And much of this progress 
can be directly attributed to President Kim.
  So, Mr. President, I take this opportunity to congratulate President 
Kim for his selection by the Nobel Committee, to celebrate those things 
that he has accomplished in his life, and to wish him much success in 
the days, months, and years that follow.

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