President Lee: "Is Syngman Rhee a Communist Too?" Directly Hits Back at 'Communist' Attacks on Farmland Sale Orders

[The Financial News] President Lee Jae-myung of South Korea recently stated that farmland not being cultivated should be subject to compulsory sale orders. He went on to criticize, saying there are people "who do not understand the principle that only those who actually farm the land may own it, and who talk about the Communist Party because of it."
On the 25th, Lee shared on his social networking service (SNS) an article summarizing remarks he made the previous day at a Cabinet meeting. He wrote, "The target of farmland sale orders is not inherited farmland or land left uncultivated unavoidably due to old age after farming. It refers to farmland acquired for speculative purposes by submitting a farming plan promising to cultivate it directly, but then leaving it idle or leasing it out after purchase."
Lee explained, "Under the principle that only those who actually farm the land may own it, which is enshrined in the Constitution of the Republic of Korea, and under the Farmland Act, only those who will personally cultivate the land may acquire farmland. In such cases, they must submit a farming plan, and if they violate this and do not farm the land themselves, the law clearly provides that, after due process, a sale order shall be issued."
He continued, "If someone acquires farmland by falsely claiming they will farm it and then does not actually farm, shouldn’t we respect the principle that only those who actually farm the land may own it and require disposal of that land in accordance with the law?" He stressed, "It was former President Syngman Rhee who wrote this principle into the Constitution and forcibly acquired land from landlords who did not farm, then distributed it to farmers."
Saying that "Farmland redistribution by the Syngman Rhee administration, based on the principle that only those who actually farm the land may own it, laid the foundation for South Korea’s economic development," Lee added, "There are many reasons, including civilian massacres, why Syngman Rhee cannot be fully accepted, yet the achievement of implementing farmland redistribution is highly regarded. Syngman Rhee was not a Communist or a 'red.'" With that, he concluded his remarks.
bng@fnnews.com Kim Hee-sun Reporter