Song Young-gil

Song Young-gil
송영길
Leader of the Democratic Party
Incumbent
Assumed office 2 May 2021
Preceded by	Lee Nak-yon Yun Ho-jung (acting)
Member of the National Assembly Chair of the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee
Incumbent
Assumed office 30 May 2020
Preceded by	Choi Won-sik
Constituency	Gyeyang B (Incheon)
In office 30 May 2000 – 26 April 2010
Preceded by	Ahn Sang-soo, Lee Kyeong-jae
Constituency	Gyeyang B (Incheon) (2004~2010)(2016~) Gyeyang (Incheon) (2000~2004)
Mayor of Incheon
In office 1 July 2010 – 30 June 2014
Preceded by	Ahn Sang-soo
Succeeded by	Yoo Jung-bok
Personal details
Born	(1963-03-21) 21 March 1963 (age 58) (Solar Calendar) 26 February 1963 (Lunar Calendar) Goheung, South Jeolla, South Korea
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Nam Young-sin
Children	1 son and 1 daughter
Alma mater	Yonsei University
Religion	Roman Catholicism(Christian name : Andrew Kim Taegon)

Song Young-gil
Hangul	송영길
Hanja	宋永吉
Revised Romanization	Song Yeonggil
McCune–Reischauer	Song Yŏngkil

Song Young Gil (Korean: 송영길; Hanja: 宋永吉; born 21 March 1963) is a South Korean politician currently serving as the Leader of the centre-liberal Democratic Party since 2 May 2021. He is also the Member of the National Assembly, as well as the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee of the 21st National Assembly. He is also the Chairman of the Democratic Party's Special Committee on Peace and Cooperation in Northeast Asia. He was a chairman of the Presidential Committee on Northern Economic Cooperation. He previously served as Mayor of Incheon from 2010 to 2014. Prior to serving as mayor, he was a democratic movement student activist and a member of the Korean National Assembly for three terms. He is a practicing Catholic.

Profile[]

^[1]

Education[]

• 1981.2 - Graduated from Dae-Dong High School
• 1988.2 - BA in Business Administration, Yonsei University
• 2000 - Completed Global Top Leader Course, Yonsei Graduate School of International Studies
• 2000 - Completed National Policy Course, Seoul Graduate School of Public Administration

(thesis: Problems and solutions in the legislative process of the National Assembly)

• 2005.2 - BA in Chinese Language & Literature, Korea National Open University
• 2009 - Completed Global Green Leadership Course, Korea University
• 2013 - BA in Japanese Studies, Korea National Open University
• 2018 - Honorary Doctorate Degree in Politics, Chosun University^[2]

Career[]

• 1984 - First directly-elected President of General Student Council of Yeonsei University
• 1985 - Welder at Daewoo Motor, Incheon
• 1991 - Executive Secretary of , Incheon
• 1994 - Passed the 36th Korean National Bar Exam
• 1997 - Completed training from Judicial Research & Training Institute Human rights lawyer for laborers
• 2000~2004 - Member of the 16th Korean National Assembly
• 2000~2002 - Member of Legislation & Judiciary Committee, National Assembly
• 2002~2004 - Member of Finance & Economy Committee, National Assembly
• 2004~2008 - Member of the 17th National Assembly (re-elected)

Chairman of the Korean-Japan Inter-Parliamentary Council’s 21st Century Committee

Chairman of the Korea-France Parliaments’ Friendship Association

• 2004 - Secretary of Special Committee on the Korean Killed by Terrorists in Iraq
• 2004~2005 - Secretary of Special Committee on Promotion of Relations between South and North Korea
• 2004~2006 - Secretary of Finance & Economy Committee, National Assembly
• 2005~2007 - Vice Chair of Committee on Policy, Uri Party
• 2006~2007 - Chairman of Special Committee on , Uri Party

Member of Special Committee on Hosting Asian Games Incheon 2014, National Assembly

• 2006~2008 - Secretary of Special Committee on Korea-US FTA Ratification, National Assembly
• 2007 - Secretary-General of Uri Party
• 2007~2008 - Chairman of the United New Democratic Party's Incheon Division
• 2007~2010 - Uri Party Co-Chairman of the Market Economy & Social Safety Net Forum
• 2008~2010 - Member of the 18th Korean National Assembly (third term)

Member of Committee on Health, Welfare and Family, National Assembly

Member of Committee on Information, National Assembly

Supreme Council Member of the Democratic Party

Head of Reform & Future, a group of young reform-minded lawmakers, Democratic Party

• 2009~2010 - Member of Special Committee on GM Daewoo Recovery
• 2010~2014 - Mayor of Incheon Metropolitan City
• 2016~2020 - Member of the 20th Korean National Assembly (fourth term)
• 2017.8~2018.7- Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Northern Economic Cooperation
• 2018.9 ~ Chairman of the Special Committee on Peace and Cooperation in the Northeast Asia, Democratic Party of Korea
• 2020.5~ - Member of the 21st Korean National Assembly (fifth term)

Personal history[]

Song, Young Gil was born in Goheung, South Jeolla Province in 1963 and experienced the Gwangju Democratization Movement when he was in Dae-Dong High School. He became the first ever directly elected president of Yonsei University's student council. While he was the president of the student council, Song participated in the democratic movement with students from other universities. In 1985, Song was sent to prison for one-and-a-half years for violating the Law on Assembly and Demonstration. Following his release, Song worked as a laborer, including time as a welder for Daewoo Motor, and as a taxi driver for 7 years. At the age of 30, he took the National Bar Examination to challenge human rights violations and improve unfair treatment of the underprivileged. After passing the exam, he became an active human rights lawyer working alongside the weak and the poor. In 1999, in order to further help those in need, he ran in the 1999 by-elections, but lost. He was later elected as a National Assemblyman in the 2000, 2004 and 2008 general elections. As a lawmaker, his activities include a member of Special Committees on the Historical Distortion of Japanese Textbooks, Against the Iraq War, the Korea-US FTA, and KIKO. He was also a member of the Legislation & Judiciary Committee and the Finance & Economy Committee. When he was member of the National Assembly's Committee on Health, Welfare and Information and a Supreme Council Member of the Democratic Party, he ran in the Incheon mayoral election and was elected Mayor on June 2, 2010. ^[3]

Life[]

Early life[]

Song, Young Gil was born in Goheung, South Jeolla Province, the fourth son of a poor civil servant. He grew up in a rural area and was inspired by nature. In May 1980 when he was a senior high school student, he witnessed the Gwangju Democratization Movement. Seeing the deaths of innocent citizens with his own eyes marked a turning point in his life. After entering Yonsei University to study business management in 1981, he joined the anti-dictatorship movement without any hesitation. In 1984, he succeeded in removing the government-controlled student body and reinstated the student council. He subsequently became the first ever directly elected president of the student council and thereafter led the student democratization movement. He was jailed as a result. In 1988, he was recognized for his contribution to democratization and had his rights reinstated.^{[citation needed]}

Labor movement[]

After release from jail in 1985, Song moved to Incheon to start life as a laborer. He became a welder at the Daewoo Motor factory in Incheon. He also worked in watch, glove, and furniture factories for two years. In 1987 with the support of Germany's human rights foundation ‘Bread for the World’ and Kim, Dae-joong, Kim, Young-sam and other politicians, Song established ‘Christian Public Education Research Institutes’ in Bupyeong, Incheon. Song conducted legal counseling for human rights violations, education on labor unions, and provided legal support. While working as a taxi driver, he democratized the Taxi Labor Union and became the first Secretary-General of the National Taxi Trade Union, Incheon Division in 1991. He dedicated himself in promoting the rights of transportation laborers.

Human rights lawyer[]

After passing the National Bar Examination in 1994, he went to Incheon. He worked as a human rights lawyer.^{[citation needed]}

Political career[]

He ran in the 1999 by-election to help people in need but lost because the general public was disenchanted by politics at the time.^{[citation needed]} Shortly afterwards, Song began his career as a National Assemblyman in 2000.

Human rights activities[]

Based on his experience as a lawyer, Song applied to work for the Legislation & Judiciary Committee to take care of bills that are closely related to the people's livelihood and human rights. Song led a National assembly delegation which attended a Human Rights and Parliamentary Conference for the five Northeast Asian nations which was held in Mongolia. At the conference, he made a speech about the human rights situation in Korea and proposed legislation on anti-humanitarian crimes. As a member of the Legislation & Judiciary Committee of the National Assembly, Song played a crucial role in creating a law on the National Human Rights Commission. Song also assumed the role of Chairman of the Democratic Party's Commission on the Yong-san Tragedy to negotiate with the government and Seoul City over much delayed compensation and funeral issues.^{[citation needed]}

Correcting distorted history[]

Events during the Japanese colonization of Korea have been thorny issues for decades, including the issue of compensation for Korean comfort women used by the Japanese army, the distorted history which appears in Japanese textbooks, and the name and territorial rights over the islet of Dokdo. In response to this, Song proposed a resolution on the distortion of Japanese history books and the elimination of vestiges of the Japanese colonial period with other lawmakers, calling for immediate action by the Korean government. In 2001, through the activities of a special committee, Song sent CDs containing information on Japan's invasion, comfort women and the distortion of Japanese history books to 600 overseas institutions, demanding Japan's apology and asking for the support of other nations. In addition to calling for Japan's apology, Song attended the Joint Conference of the Korea-Japan Inter-Parliamentary Council and proposed a statement which sought ways for Korea and Japan to cooperate in diverse areas as new partners. As such, Song has underscored a more accurate perception of history and contributed to a future-oriented partnership.^[4]

Anti-Iraq War and peace[]

In 2003, the Bush administration invaded Iraq to eliminate weapons of mass destruction without legitimate reason. All people of conscience opposed the war and demanded peace. For Korea, which is faced with the nuclear weapons development of North Korea, the US invasion of Iraq was not something that they could ignore. Amid the government's lukewarm attitude due to the Korea-US alliance, Song and other lawmakers agreed that they needed to take action as lawmakers. Starting with an understanding on the Iraq situation, they drafted an anti-war statement and resolution urging others to join. After that, they formed an Iraq Fact Finding Team led by Song to visit Iraq in order to possibly find a peaceful resolution through the extension of UN weapons inspectors and promote Korean lawmakers’ support for a peaceful resolution of the Iraq War to the world.^{[citation needed]}

The lawmakers met the Iraq Congress President Hammadi and Chairman Kubaisai of the Diplomatic Commission of the Iraq Congress to express their opinion that Iraq could avoid the war by complying with UN regulations which would increase its credibility among international society. They held a press conference to announce their statement against the US attack on Iraq and their message supporting peace. Song also met NGO groups to offer unsparing encouragement and support for their activities. Since then, Song has continued his efforts for peace including sending messages of peace to the Pope and Nelson Mandela, the former President of South Africa. As the secretary of the Special Committee on the Korean Killed by Terrorists in Iraq, he visited Iraq again and urged the world to act to prevent war and bring peace where justice and freedom would prevail.

Support for Myanmar's democratization movement[]

Song thought that there should be keen interest in and support for Myanmar from the whole world as well as Korea, and has cooperated with it since 2003. In 2007, he and 13 lawmakers who were dedicated to the democratization of Korea during the dictatorship in the 1980s jointly proposed a resolution that supported the democratization of Myanmar and donated money that had been raised to the Korean branch of the Myanmar Democratization Alliance.^[5] In October 2008, they announced a resolution which called for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest and expressed support for the Myanmare people who continued to struggle against the junta. They also sent a letter to UN Secretary-General Ban, Ki-moon and Myanmar military regime to urge the democratization of Myanmar.

Inter-Korean exchanges[]

Song has said that to prepare for reunification and to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue, the South needs to increase similarities through economic, political and cultural exchanges with the North, which would help the North Korean economy increase its self-reliance. He believes that to bring lasting peace to the Korean Peninsula, new changes are much needed. In this context, Song went to Pyeongyang with young businessmen in 2003 and discussed the possibility of expanding economic cooperation and cultural exchanges between the two Koreas. Song has also visited Gaeseong Industrial Complex several times which has been playing a critical role in ensuring the self-reliance of North Korea and contributing to peace on the Korean Peninsula and in the world. Through these visits, he saw for himself the importance of Gaeseong Industrial Complex for Korean small enterprises as new sales channels. He held meetings with businessmen and government officials to encourage more companies to move to the North which might in turn induce the communist nation to introduce reform and openness. Song and the Democratic Party urged the government to carry out what had been agreed upon in the June 15 and October 4 Joint Declaration to improve relations between the two Koreas which had been strained by the tough stance of the current administration on North Korea. He also called on the government to enter dialogue with the North and to closely cooperate with neighboring countries to form 6-party talks which play such a vital role in the joint security of Northeast Asia. After becoming Incheon Mayor in 2010, Mayor Song declared Incheon to be the outpost of reconciliation, exchanges, peace and reunification of the two Koreas. Despite opposition from the government, he has insisted that there should be peace on the 5 islands near the Northern Limit Line in the West Sea for the economic development of Incheon. At the same time, Song has provided products to mothers and babies in North Korea through an agreement with the Korea Peace Foundation, which opened a door that was shut after the North's sinking of the Cheonan.^[6]

Enhancing competitiveness for small and medium enterprises[]

While working for 6 years as a member of the Finance & Economy Committee in the National Assembly, Song felt that the main driver of Korea's economy came from the small companies which account for 80% of all companies and therefore that the most important thing is to lay down foundations for those firms to grow. In 2008, most small exporting firms bought currency option products called KIKO (Knock-in Knock-out) to avoid the risk of foreign exchange rate fluctuations.^[7] The companies were about to collapse again due to the inappropriate exchange rate policy of the current government but the government didn't take the proper measures to rescue small companies. Song urged the Democratic Party to pay keen interest in this issue and to find solutions. By forming a special committee, he held dozens of meetings with small enterprises and led hearings to narrow differences and find solutions. In due course, he got a promise from the government to provide speedy support for small enterprises which performed well.

Diplomatic activities[]

He became the Chairman of the Korean-Japan Inter-Parliamentary Council's 21st Century Committee in 2004, and consequently held discussions and conferences on the various issues concerning Korea and Japan. He was also the Chairman of the Korea-France Parliaments’ Friendship Association and led active exchanges to promote knowledge about the EU and France. In 2007, he received Légion d'Honneur Chevalier from France for his dedication in promoting relations between Korea and France.^[8] After his second term, Song realized the importance of diplomacy and visited and received other nations in order to increase exchanges and deepen the understanding of the US, Australia, China and other neighboring nations. When the Korea-US FTA negotiations began in 2006, Song became the Chairman of the Uri Party's Special Committee on the Korea-US FTA in order to reflect the opinions of stakeholders and to take measures.^[9] As such, he was able to expand exchanges with US officials including negotiation delegates and US congressmen. As the recognition of products from Gaesong Industrial Complex as Korean products became a hot issue, Song exchanged opinions on Gaeseong Industrial Complex that could help North Korea's self-reliance and guarantee peace on the Korean Peninsula. In 2007, at the invitation of a US senator, he attended a reception marking the opening of the US Congress and discussed the Korea-US FTA, the North Korean nuclear program, and peace on the Korean Peninsula with then presidential nominee Obama, Senator Biden and other congressmen of the Democratic Party. In 2008, the results of the US presidential election and the Democratic Party's regaining control after 8 years demanded new cooperation and close exchanges between Korea and the US. Song formed a Special Committee on Korea-US Relations Development and as chairman he endeavored to establish balanced diplomatic relations between Korea and the US, develop inter-Korean relations, enhance the Korea-US alliance, and promote economic cooperation including the Korea-US FTA.

Incheon mayoral election[]

When he declared his intention to run in the Incheon mayoral election, Song explained that he was running to win. At that time, the victory of the Democratic Party in the three metropolitan areas of Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon was uncertain, but he made it clear that he would win in Incheon, triggering victories in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province, which will lay the foundations for a change of administration. With the announcement of his running, Song talked about his plans for nurturing small enterprises, balancing development between the old and new town, expanding welfare provision, enhancing educational competitiveness, and providing free eco-friendly meals to make Incheon the economic capital of Korea. link ^{[10] [11]}

Tsinghua University[]

Song ran for 6th local election (Incheon mayoral election) in 2014. After losing the election against Yoo, Jeong Bok by 1.75%, He decided to study abroad at Tsinghua University in China. While he was studying at Tsinghua University, his research foci were the issues of housing, jobs and welfare system. He returned to Korea in 2015. Following October, he launched ‘eat and live’ research lab to further develop his research at Tsinghua University into policies

Member of the 20th National Assembly[]

On 1 March 2016, Song declared that he is running for the National Assembly as a Democrat in Incheon's Gyeyang (B) constituency, which he represented in previous years. He considered running in competitive constituency. However, he decided to run in Gyeyang (B) after assemblyman Choi, Won Sik leaves the Democratic Party despite Song's persuasion to stay. Song declared that he will run for the party leadership after the general election and he said that he takes the full responsibility of the entire elections in Incheon and will recover the Incheon politics. On 13 April 2016, he won the post by 12% against Yoon, Hyung-sun of Saenuri Party. He returned to the National Assembly after 6 years since he ran for the 5th General election in 2010

On 24 July 2016, He declared his running for the party leadership. He pledged to devote himself to make the Party into a ‘strong’ opposition and to replace the Saenuri government in the upcoming presidential election. He was considered to be the leading candidate who represented the wide mainstream democrats. However, he lost the primary election. Political commentators analyze Song's 'cut-off' with two reasons, disparity of ‘pro-Roh’ (pro-Roh, Moo-Hyun) voters and the very last minute leadership bid waged by Lee, Jong-kul, which gathered strong ‘non-Roh’ voters.

On 8 February 2017, Song joined Moon, Jae-in's campaign for the 19th Presidential Election as chief campaign manager. It is later known that Moon persuaded Song several times to join his presidential campaign. Song commented that “I also considered running for the presidential election, however, I decided to cooperate with Moon to replace the government and believe that helping Moon is answering the call of the people of Republic of Korea”^[12]

At the beginning of Moon's presidency, Song has been designated as the special envoy of President Moon Jae-in to the Russian Federation in May 2017. In following August, Song became the chairman of the Presidential Committee on Northern Economic Cooperation., which holds the equivalent grade of a deputy prime minister.

President of the Parliamentary Study Group on Climate Change and Green New Deal Policy of the 21st National Assembly[]

Song serves as the President of the Parliamentary Study Group on Climate Change and Green New Deal Policy of the National Assembly. The study group was established following the opening of the 21^st National Assembly with 28 legislators. The group was launched on 12 July 2020, and officially started its activities on 27 July 2020.

President of the Democratic Party[]

On 2 May 2021, Song was elected the new President of the Democratic Party.^[13] He received 35.60%, barely defeating Hong Young-pyo with a margin of 0.59%.^[13]

Election results[]

Election	Constituency	Party	% of Votes	Result
1999 By-election	Gyeyang & Ganghwa (B), Incheon	National Congress for New Politics	41.80%	2nd
16th General Election	Gyeyang, Incheon	Millennium Democratic Party	47.9%	1st
17th General Election	Gyeyang (B), Incheon	Uri Party	55.6%	1st
18th General Election	Gyeyang (B), Incheon	Democratic Party	46.1%	1st
5th Local Election	Incheon (Mayoral election)	Democratic Party	52.7%	1st
6th Local Election	Incheon (Mayoral election)	New Politics Alliance for Democracy	48.20%	2nd
20th General Election	Gyeyang (B), Incheon	Democratic Party	43.3%	1st
21st General Election	Gyeyang (B), Incheon	Democratic Party	58.6%	1st

Recognition[]

• 2000 - Selected as the best National Assemblyman for Inspection of National Affairs
• 2001~2004 - Selected as the best National Assembly research groups

Ethical Politics Research Group

Lawmakers to Nurture National Spirit

Lawmakers for the National Interest and Culture

• 2003~2004 - Selected as the outstanding National Assembly research groups

Ethical Politics Research Group

Lawmakers to Nurture National Spirit

• 2005~2008 - Selected as the outstanding National Assembly research group

Market Economy and Social Safety Net Forum (co-head)

• 2009 - Légion d'Honneur Chevalier, France
• 2010 - Proud Yonsei People Award, Yonsei University
• 2013 - Орден Дружбы, Russia
• 2016 - Selected as the outstanding National Assembly research

국민의 먹고사는 문제해결을 위한 의원연구모임 'Forum to better the livelihood of the people of Republic of Korea' (co-head)

Publications[]

• Song, Young Gil (2003) Follow this Path like a Bull
• Song, Young Gil (2009) Turning Walls into Doors
• Song, Young Gil (2020) 송영길의 지구본 외교: 둥근것이 강한 것을 이긴다!

References[]