"Mixed Urban-Rural Area Gimpo, Rural Special Cases Disappear Upon Incorporation into Seoul"

Professor Hong Junhyun of Chung-Ang University Department of Public Talent YTN Interview
"Gimpo, Objective Data Must Be Provided Before Resident Vote"

Professor Hong Jun-hyun of the Department of Public Talent at Chung-Ang University pointed out that the 'Mega City Seoul' plan is being pushed forward without fully reviewing the related procedures and side effects.

On the 3rd, Professor Hong appeared on YTN Radio's 'News King Park Ji-hoon' and said, "According to the Local Autonomy Act, when administrative districts are reorganized like this, the opinions of the relevant local councils must be heard, or a referendum must be held among the residents of the related local governments." He added, "Some reorganizations do not end as just a local issue; they affect other areas as well, so the opinions of those affected must be fully collected."

Professor Hong said, "They are trying to bypass these procedural issues by handling it through a special law via legislative proposals, which is not impossible," but he expressed concern that if sufficient opinions from local residents are not gathered, disputes like those seen in the case of the integrated Changwon City could arise.

On the 2nd, a banner welcoming the "Public Discussion on Incorporation of Gimpo City into Seoul" was hung on a road in Gimpo City, Gyeonggi Province. Photo by Yonhap News

He said, "(The integrated Changwon City) was a merger of Masan, Changwon, and Jinhae, but at that time, instead of going through a referendum, it was done by approval and resolution of the local council according to the Local Autonomy Act." He added, "Legally, it was correct, but now in Changwon, opinions from residents saying the integration was wrong are emerging, and there are calls for separation again."

He continued, "Ultimately, the best way to resolve these procedural issues is through the referendum system, which is also stipulated in the Referendum Act, and resolving it through that seems to be the proper course."

Professor Hong also emphasized the need to provide objective data to the citizens of Gimpo regarding the incorporation of Gimpo into Seoul. He said, "The most important thing when holding a referendum is to provide all possible outcomes caused by administrative actions through objective data, and then conduct the referendum." He added, "Simply asking whether one is for or against incorporation can be misleading."

He went on, "Gimpo is a mixed urban-rural area, not only consisting of dong (neighborhoods) but also eup and myeon (towns and townships). In the case of eup and myeon areas, they must be converted into dong because only dong can be placed in autonomous districts." He said, "The problem is that benefits related to rural and fishing village special cases will disappear."

Professor Hong explained, "Special admissions for rural and fishing villages, especially in university admissions, will no longer be available, and in terms of taxation, reductions on property tax, registration license tax, and environmental budget charges that rural areas have received will all be lost." He added, "Also, rural areas receive benefits under the Rural Road Maintenance Act when improving road environments, but these will no longer apply."

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