'Watermelons Allowed, Cabbage Not' ... "4th Disaster Relief Fund Is a Discriminatory Policy Against Farmers"

Gyeongnam Farmers' Group "Government Should Provide 4th Disaster Relief Fund to All Farmers"

On the 22nd, agricultural organizations in Gyeongnam held a press conference for the '4th Disaster Relief Fund' in front of the Gyeongnam Provincial Party Office of the Democratic Party of Korea.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Saeyan] As the supplementary budget bill for the government's 4th disaster relief fund is expected to pass the National Assembly plenary session on the 24th, voices are emerging among farmers calling it a "discriminatory policy against farmers in an emergency disaster situation."

On the 22nd, the Gyeongnam Farmers' Organization held a press conference in front of the Democratic Party of Korea Gyeongsangnam-do Provincial Office, strongly demanding that "the government provide disaster relief funds to all farmers."

The government announced on the 10th that it would include farmers in the 4th disaster relief fund subject to bipartisan agreement.

Subsequently, on the 17th, the National Assembly's Agriculture, Forestry, Livestock, Food, and Maritime Fisheries Committee newly allocated 1,124.71 billion won for disaster relief funds in the agricultural sector.

However, as the bill moved to the National Assembly Budget and Accounts Committee, the government nullified the farmers' disaster relief fund. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Ministry of Economy and Finance are advocating for selective payments of about 150 billion won, proposing a drastic cut to about one-eighth of the original budget.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture's claim, in the case of winter watermelon farms, prices have plummeted to one-third, so they would receive payments; however, cabbage farms, whose prices fell to one-fourth during the same period, would not receive support.

In response, farmers' organizations raised their voices, stating, "The government is not only ignoring agriculture but is denying the very existence of agriculture and farmers."

They added, "While the president 'soothes' publicly, the executive branch 'changes its words' behind the scenes, showing disrespect to farmers, which has angered them," and "We strongly condemn the Moon Jae-in administration for sidelining agriculture in national policy without any agricultural philosophy."

They further demanded, "While actively providing relief to corporations, merchants, youth, and students, neglecting only farmers is a discriminatory policy," and "The government must provide disaster relief funds to all farmers."

Meanwhile, on the 18th, Assemblyman Cho Hae-jin delivered a government appeal titled 'Urging Expansion of Support for the Agricultural and Fisheries Sectors in the 4th Disaster Relief Fund' to the Blue House, the Prime Minister's Office, and the National Assembly.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.