 Choi Seok-young |
By Kim Tae-gyu
The Seoul administration has committed hundreds of errors in translating the free trade agreements (FTAs) with the United States and Peru into Korean.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MOFAT) said Friday that the FTA between Korea and the U.S. had a total of 296 blunders including 166 incorrect translations, 65 outright omissions and nine typos. It also located 145 miscues in the trade pact with Peru.
This is expected to add fresh pressure on Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon, who has faced mounting demand to step down after the FTA with the European Union was found to feature 207 foul-ups in early May.
``We have examined the Korean versions of the two free trade deals and discovered the mistakes. We have already corrected them in consultation with the U.S. and Peru,’’ Deputy Trade Minister Choi Seok-young told a press conference.
``The two revised FTAs have won the approval of the Cabinet meeting early Friday and they were immediately submitted for lawmakers’ consideration.’’
The announcement means all of the country’s three free trade treaties, which were signed but have yet to go into effect, were full of faults _ those with the U.S., Peru and the EU.
After signing the free trade deal with EU last October, MOFAT pulled it out from the unicameral parliament twice due to translation mistakes although it eventually got the parliamentary nod to start this July.
In this climate, some observers claim that Trade Minister Kim should quit.
``The government brands itself as one of the world’s top 10 economic powerhouses. I want to say that these translation errors are not supposed to happen at the world’s top economic power,’’ professor Lee Phil-sang at Korea University said.
``I don’t know what our bureaucrats are doing with so many of them having studied abroad with taxpayers’ money. Someone has to take responsibility for the translation fiasco and it would be Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon.’’
The talks on the FTA with Peru started in 2009 and both signed the contract early this year.
Seoul and Washington concluded the free trade deal in 2007. Yet, the two parties began renegotiations late last year at the strong request of the United States.
They managed to seal a new pact after revising some clauses on vehicles, visas and other thorny issues in February, sparking criticism that Korea conceded too much.
Meanwhile MOFAT presented the FTA to the National Assembly for passage but the ministry voluntarily withdrew it after the agreement was suspected of containing many inaccurate translations and other errors.
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