Moon sees the bright side of South Korea
Nominated as presidential candidate
Seoul, April 3: The man tipped to become South Korea’s next President was formally nominated Monday as candidate of the main opposition party, and promised “justice” in a nation rocked by the impeachment of its former leader.
Moon Jae-In, the leftleaning former chief of staff to late President Roh Moo-Hyun, became the Democratic Party’s standard-bearer for the poll on May 9.
It was called after Park Guen-Hye was removed from the presidency over a scandal which led to her arrest on Friday.
Mr Moon, known for his softer stance on North Korea, has suggested Seoul should engage with Pyongyang. His conservative critics say he could also loosen South Korea’s longstanding alliance with the United States, which bases 28,500 troops in the country.
The 64-year-old former human rights lawyer promised to “start a new history with the Korean people” after securing a total of 57 per cent of the votes in nationwide primaries for his party.
“This presidential election is not a showdown between conservatives and liberals but a choice between justice and injustice,” said Mr Moon in his acceptance speech.
Mr Moon was beaten in the 2012 presidential election by Ms Park and his party has been out of power for nearly 10 years.
But this election looks set to give him a chance at power, with opinion polls suggesting he has a commanding lead.
A Realmeter survey published on Monday put him on 34.9 per cent, with his nearest rival, former software tycoon Ahn Cheol-Soo, trailing far behind at 18.7 per cent.
In December, Mr Moon said that if elected, he was willing to visit North Korea ahead of the United States, the South’s security guarantor. He also vowed to recognise North Korea’s strongman leader as his dialogue partner.