ARIRANG NEWS 20:00 S. Korean gov't calls for wage freeze at Kaesong Complex

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ARIRANG NEWS 20:00

Another point of inter-Korean tensions. South Korea calls for a wage freeze at an inter-Korean business park despite North Korea′s unilateral demand for a pay raise.
Exports, a traditional backbone of the Korean economy, are losing steam. The contribution of outbound shipments to growth... fell to a five-year low last year.
No breakthrough yet... in talks on Iran′s nuclear program.
Two days have passed since a self-imposed Tuesday deadline.

Hello, everybody. Welcome to Arirang News. Thanks for tuning in. Coming to you live from Seoul, I′m Kang Chery.
Title: S. Korean gov′t calls for wage freeze at Kaesong Complex
Tensions are rising over North Korea′s unilateral demand for a pay raise at the joint Kaesong Industrial Complex.
The South Korean government is calling for a wage freeze until an inter-Korean agreement is reached,... warning of legal measures against companies that disregard the order.
Hwang Sung-hee reports.
In a statement on Thursday in Seoul, the unification ministry asked for a minimum wage freeze for North Korean workers until a deal is reached between the two Koreas.
The ministry warned that companies ignoring the freeze could face administrative and legal measures under the Inter-Korean Exchange and Cooperation Act.
The statement comes just over a week before pay day for the workers starts on April 10th.
Last month, North Korea demanded a unilateral pay raise and revision of 13 regulations, including scrapping the current salary cap of five percent.
South Korea says these issues must be settled through government-level talks.
The wage tussle is raising concerns that another unilateral shutdown of the complex could follow.
But experts say Pyongyang will refrain from repeating the closure it initiated two years ago.

"If the Kaesong Industrial Complex closes again, it will be hard to turn inter-Korean relations around. So it′s highly likely that North Korea will use it as a means to intimidate and pressure South Korea."

The Kaesong Industrial Complex, where more than 54-thousand North Koreans work at 1-hundred-24 South Korean companies, is the last remaining form of inter-Korean cooperation.

"A high-ranking South Korean government official said the best way to improve the management of the joint business park is to open it up to more foreign companies. Both sides agreed to that measure two years ago, but no progress has been made so far.
Hwang Sung-hee, Arirang News."
Title: President Park meets U.S. Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi
President Park Geun-hye met with U.S. Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi in Seoul on this Thursday... and discussed a variety of pending issues.
Welcoming the U.S. bipartisan congressional delegation to Korea, President Park stressed that their countries′ alliance stands stronger than ever.
She added that support from the U.S. Congress was the key in maintaining bilateral ties.
During talks, Pelosi sympathized with President Par