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64-418: The Pan Korea Grand Waterway was a project of Lee Myung-bak , the 10th president of South Korea . It met with huge controversy and disapproval and was later abandoned. Lee stated that the canal would bring clear water source by cleaning layers of sediments that formed in the rivers, create tourist infrastructure and prevent disturbance of logistics. Many Koreans were anxious about Lee's plans. They argued that

128-593: A tourist attraction . In particular, the development of the canal would increase the accessibility to cultural assets that are far to reach, and hence more efficient management of those assets would be possible. Lee's promise to build the Grand Korean Waterway stalled due to low public opinion. If successful, Lee maintained that his plan, which would include dredging and other measures to improve Korea's waterways, would decrease water pollution, and bring economic benefits to local communities. Speaking in 2005 about

192-527: A " free market ," while ignoring the underfunding of education in regions outside the Seoul area. However, the government designated 82 well-performing high schools in rural areas as "public boarding school" and granted funds amounting to 317 billion won in total, with 3.8 billion won each on average. The Lee government planned to use a pool of young Korean Americans for the promotion of after-school English education in public schools in rural areas, with

256-467: A company called BBK were raised. In 1999, Lee was alleged to have met an American and established the LKE Bank with him. However, this enterprise went bankrupt less than a year later. The corrupt Korean prosecutors manipulated BBK case so that Lee was found not to be guilty. However, in 2018 Lee was arrested for charges related to BBK. Although, the prosecutor claimed in 2007 that Lee had nothing to do with DAS,

320-516: A corporation that funded BBK, in 2018 the same prosecution office found that DAS is owned and controlled by Lee. In spite of the lowest voter turnout ever for a presidential election in South Korea, Lee won the presidential election in December 2007 with 48.7% of the vote which was considered a landslide . He finished with a nearly 2-to-1 margin over his nearest challenger, Chung Dong-young of

384-471: A departure from his previous views on North Korea, Lee announced a plan to "engage" North Korea through investment. He promised to form a consultative body with the North to discuss furthering economic ties. The body would have subcommittees on the economy, education, finance, infrastructure and welfare, and a cooperation fund of $ 40 billion. He promised to seek a Korean Economic Community agreement to establish

448-549: A handwritten statement on Facebook denying the charges. Lee's arrest occurred roughly a year after the arrest of former president Park Geun-Hye , who was arrested on charges stemming from the 2016 South Korean political scandal . Lee was convicted on 5 October 2018 and sentenced to 15 years in prison. On 29 October 2020, the Korean Supreme Court upheld a 17-year sentence against Lee given to him by an appellate court. On 27 December 2022, President Yoon Suk-yeol granted Lee

512-559: A little under three months of his sentence at the Seodaemun Prison in Seoul. In his autobiography, Lee wrote that he was discharged from Korea's mandatory military service due to a diagnosis of acute bronchiectasis while at the Nonsan Training Facility. In 1965, Lee started work at Hyundai Construction, the company which was awarded Korea's first-ever overseas construction project, a $ 5.2 million contract to build

576-496: A malfunctioning bulldozer to study its mechanics and figure out how to repair it, only to run it over with another bulldozer that was often operated by Lee himself. Lee became a company director at the age of 29, five years after he joined the company. He later became the CEO at age 35, becoming Korea's youngest CEO in history. In 1988, he was named chairman of Hyundai Construction at the age of 47. When he began work at Hyundai in 1965,

640-488: A member of the 14th Korean National Assembly (for Proportional representation ). Upon his election, he stated that he ran for the office because "after watching Mikhail Gorbachev change the world, I wanted to see if I could do the same." In 1995, he ran for the city of Seoul's mayoral election, but lost to former prime minister Chung Won-sik during the primary of the Democratic Liberal Party. In 1996, Lee

704-508: A net positive effect (such as improving the Han River). Buddhist groups have voiced fears that it would submerge nearby Buddhist relics , which would cause irreparable damage to a significant portion of Korea's cultural legacy. On the other hand, some say that once the Kyungboo Canal is developed, another 177 cultural assets could be discovered during excavations , which could be used for

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768-401: A number of bridges would need to be rebuilt and both rivers would require extensive dredging along the 540-kilometer route. Lee proposed to fund the project almost exclusively through private funds and subsidize it through the sale of sand and gravel dredged from the rivers and streams involved in the project. This dredging would, he argued, also make the rivers cleaner. The proposal included

832-558: A program where all English courses in middle and secondary schools would be taught in English only, which would require the government to educate many teachers in Korea and recruit university students studying abroad in English-speaking countries. "Mbnomics" is the term applied to Lee's macroeconomic policy. The term is a portmanteau derived by combining his initials (Myung-bak, Mb) and

896-570: A public lawn for gatherings. The Live Music Camp incident occurred in 2005, during his reign. Lee suggested that Hongdae concerts be regulated by authorities, which prompted political rivals to compare Lee to former dictator Park Chung Hee . Minister of Culture Yu In-chon convinced him not to do so. On 10 May 2007, Lee officially declared his intention to seek the nomination of the Grand National Party (GNP) as its presidential candidate. On 20 August 2007, he defeated Park Geun-hye in

960-582: A series of corruption allegations surrounding certain high-ranking government employees. The Lee administration introduced a tailor-made educational system and established the National Scholarship Foundation, which offers services such as student loans and loan counseling. In addition, the government promoted an income contingency pay-later plan to help out those struggling to pay tuition fees. Teachers were highly critical of these changes, arguing that Lee wanted to turn Korean education into

1024-732: A smaller canal, planned to link Seoul and neighboring Incheon . It was suggested that this would assist economic partnerships between the two cities, lessen traffic congestion, and stimulate tourism, beyond providing Seoul access to the Yellow Sea (West Sea). The mouth of the Han River is in an area between North Korea and South Korea, which limits economic activity in the region for security reasons. Lee Myung-bak Lee Myung-bak ( / ˌ m j ʌ ŋ ˈ b ɑː k / ; Korean :  이명박 ; Korean: [i.mjʌŋ.bak̚] ; born 19 December 1941) often referred to by his initials MB ,

1088-496: A special pardon, cancelling the remaining 15 years of the sentence. Lee Myung-bak was born 19 December 1941, in Osaka , Japan. His parents emigrated to Japan in 1929, nineteen years after the Japanese annexation of Korea . Lee's father, Lee Chung-u ( 이충우 ; 李忠雨 ), was employed as a farm labourer in rural Japan, and his mother, Chae Tae-won ( 채태원 ; 蔡太元 ), was a housewife. He was

1152-437: A statement warning that violent protesters would be punished, and measures would be taken to stop clashes between police and protesters. The protests continued for more than two months, and the original purpose of the candlelight vigils against U.S. beef imports was replaced by others, such as opposition to the privatization of public companies, education policy, and construction of the canal. The damages caused by protesters to

1216-529: A tougher policy with regard to North Korea, ideas that are promoted as the MB Doctrine . Lee stated that he wanted to restore better relations with the United States through a greater emphasis on free market solutions. Two months after his inauguration , Lee's approval ratings stood at 28%, and by June 2008 they had reached 17%. U.S. President George W. Bush and Lee also discussed the ratification of

1280-455: Is a South Korean businessman and politician who served as the 10th (17th election) president of South Korea from 2008 to 2013. Before his presidency, he was the CEO of Hyundai Engineering and Construction , and the mayor of Seoul from 2002 to 2006. He is married to Kim Yoon-ok and has three daughters and one son. His older brother, Lee Sang-deuk , is a South Korean politician. He is a Christian attending Somang Presbyterian Church . Lee

1344-467: Is a graduate of Korea University and received an honorary degree from Paris Diderot University in 2011. Lee altered the South Korean government's approach to North Korea , preferring a more hardline strategy in the wake of increased provocation from the North, though he was supportive of regional dialogue with Russia, China and Japan. Under Lee, South Korea increased its visibility and influence in

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1408-528: Is mandated with creating a new Korea where "the people are affluent, society is warm and the state strong." To this end, he planned to follow a pragmatic, market-friendly strategy: smart market economy, empirical pragmatism , and democratic activism. Lee wanted to move to low-carbon growth in coming decades. The government hoped to be a bridge between rich and poor countries in fighting global warming by setting itself goals for reductions in greenhouse gas emissions to be achieved by 2020. In connection with

1472-408: Is not inherently corrupt, but is nonetheless a form of earnings management that tends to mislead stakeholders about the organization's financial condition. Richard Nixon 's " Checkers speech " of 1952 was a somewhat successful effort to dispel a scandal concerning a slush fund of campaign contributions . Years later, Nixon's presidential re-election campaign used slush funds to buy the silence of

1536-639: The Grand Unified Democratic New Party . To date, it is the largest margin of victory since the resumption of direct presidential elections in 1987. He took the oath of office on 25 February 2008, vowing to revitalize the economy, strengthen relations with the United States and "deal with" North Korea. Specifically, Lee declared that he would pursue a campaign of "global diplomacy" and seek further cooperative exchanges with regional neighbors Japan, China, and Russia. He further pledged to strengthen South Korea–United States relations and implement

1600-454: The Hockey Canada sexual assault scandal in 2022. $ 7.6 million in 11 sexual assault settlements were paid out by these funds between 1989 and 2022. "Slush fund" was originally a nautical term for the cash that a ship's crew raised by selling fat (slush) scraped from cooking pots to tallow makers. This cash was kept separate from the ship's accounts and used to make small purchases for

1664-516: The Mayor of Seoul , some of Lee's projects included the restoration of the Cheonggyecheon stream, the creation of Seoul Forest , the opening of Seoul Forest Park, the construction of a grassy field in front of Seoul City Hall , and the addition of rapid transit buses to the city's transportation system. His administration transformed the area around Seoul City Hall from a concrete traffic circle to

1728-669: The Pattani-Narathiwat Highway in Thailand . Shortly after he was hired by the company, Lee was sent to Thailand to participate in the project, which was successfully completed in March 1968. Lee returned to Korea and was subsequently given charge of Hyundai's heavy machinery plant in Seoul. It was during his three decades with the Hyundai Group that Lee earned the nickname "Raging Bulldozer". On one occasion, he completely dismantled

1792-639: The South Korea–United States Free Trade Agreement or KORUS FTA, which faced opposition from legislators in both countries. While Lee's agreement during the summit to partially lift the ban on US beef imports was expected to remove the obstacles in approving the KORUS FTA in the US, many Koreans protested the resumption of U.S. beef imports. As protests escalated, the Korean government issued

1856-584: The " 747 Plan " and included: 7% annual growth in gross domestic product (GDP), US$ 40,000 per capita, and transforming Korea into the world's seventh largest economy . An important part of his platform was the Grand Korean Waterway ( 한반도 대운하 ) project from Busan to Seoul, which he believed would lead to an economic revival. His political opponents criticized the project, saying it was unrealistic and too costly to be realized. Others were concerned about possible negative environmental impact . Signaling

1920-733: The " White House Plumbers ". Financial derivative traders for Enron employed a slush fund system called "prudency reserves," in which the department reported part of each trade's profit or loss to the company and withheld the remainder. This system was originally used to regulate the trading department's profits, but also enabled the company to conceal large profits during the 2000–01 California electricity crisis . Hockey Canada maintained three slush funds to pay for sexual assault settlements perpetrated by ice hockey players and other uninsured claims. Membership fees from across Canada were used to fund at least one of these slush funds. The existence and purpose of these slush funds were discovered during

1984-765: The 1960s, Hyundai Construction turned its focus toward the Middle East. The company continued to be a major player in construction projects with the successful completion of international projects including the Arab Shipbuilding & Repair Yard, the Diplomatic Hotel in Bahrain , and the Jubail Industrial Harbor Projects in Saudi Arabia , also known as "the great history of the 20th century". At that time,

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2048-558: The Four Major Rivers Restoration Project was Eco-friendly, its results face severe criticism from environmental experts both inside and outside of the government. It is well described in the report in Hankyoreh, August 2013. The algae known to kill eco system of a river proliferated during summer season for many years and experts suspect it is because of weirs that slow or stop water flow. Furthermore, water quality near

2112-612: The GNP's primary to become the party's nominee for the 2007 presidential election . During the primary, Lee was accused of profiting from illegal speculation on land owned in Dogok-dong , an expensive neighborhood in Seoul. However, in August 2007, the prosecutors said in the interim announcement, "We do suspect Lee's brother's claim over the land in Dogok-dong, but have failed to verify the real owner of

2176-460: The Nakdong river deteriorated significantly after weirs were installed. The government already spent more than 3 trillion Korean won to keep the water potable as of August 2013. Lee Myung-bak faced strong criticism over his choice of political appointees, many of whom were wealthy. The concern was that Lee's appointees would favor policies that protect the rich, while failing to address the needs of

2240-457: The President. The Five-Year Plan for Green Growth laid out a 30 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 relative to a 'business-as-usual' baseline implying a 4 per cent cut from the 2005 level. The Four Major Rivers Restoration Project was a multi-purpose green growth project on the Han River (Korea) , Nakdong River , Geum River and Yeongsan River in South Korea. The project

2304-768: The Public Policy Institute for People, criticized parts of Mbnomics as "over-financing big private companies" and "worsening the fiscal state of the country". On 7 September 2011, the Blue House officially scrapped plans for a rich tax deduction , marking the foundational end of Mbnomics. The Grand Korean Waterway, officially known as the Pan Korea Grand Waterway, is a proposed 540-kilometer (340 mi) long canal , traversing difficult mountainous terrain, connecting Seoul and Busan , two of South Korea's largest cities. The canal would run diagonally across

2368-498: The aim to improve the quality of education. Prior to assuming the presidency, Lee's transition team announced it would implement a nationwide English- immersion program to provide students with the language tools necessary to be successful in a highly globalized world. Under this program, all classes would have been taught in English by 2010. However, Lee abandoned the program after facing strong opposition from parents, teachers, and education specialists. He then attempted to implement

2432-483: The allegation of illegal real-estate speculation were already replaced. Hence, the average property owned by the three replaced ministers were only 1.7 billion won. To set aside the alleged regional bias, Lee's first cabinet appointment procedure faithfully abided by the principles and rules by appointing four from Seoul and Yeongnam district, three from Honam , Gangwon , and Chungcheong province, and one from North Korea. Moreover, Lee's administration increased

2496-544: The amount of orders received by the Korean construction company exceeded US$ 10 billion, which contributed to overcoming the national crisis resulting from the oil shock. In 1992, Lee made the transition from business to politics, leaving Hyundai after a 27-year career. He joined the Democratic Liberal Party instead of the Unification National Party , founded by Chung Ju-yung . He was elected as

2560-529: The asset." On 28 September 2007, the prosecutory authority officially dropped the suspicion that the Dogok land was under a borrowed name, announcing, "We have done all necessary investigations, including tracing the proceeds from the sale of the land and call history, and now got to the bottom of this case." In December 2007, a few days before the presidential election, Lee announced that he would donate all of his assets to society. Lee's stated goals were expressed in

2624-452: The businesses around the demonstration and the social cost reached approximately 3,751,300,000,000 South Korean won. According to The Wall Street Journal , Lee's plan to privatize public companies was a modest but "perhaps important step" toward reform. As the government gained more stability, the approval rating of Lee's administration rose to 32.8%. Since the resumption of U.S. beef imports, more people are buying U.S. beef and now it has

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2688-558: The canal plan under the guise of "maintenance of the 4 great rivers (4대강 정비사업)." President Lee Myung-bak laid out an agenda for National Strategy for Green Growth and the Five-Year Plan for Green Growth in 2008. In February 2009, President Lee established the Presidential Committee on Green Growth, which absorbed the sustainable development commission and two other committees on energy and climate change under direct authority of

2752-404: The canal would prove disastrous to the natural environment and potentially hazardous to the freshwater sources that nearly 50 million residents of the country depend on. In addition, many researchers and interested distribution industries prospected the canal would be economically unprofitable because land transportation may be more cost-effective. Supporters of the plan insisted that the length of

2816-718: The charges. Those involved in the allegation of receiving bribes from Samsung group have been cleared of charges after special prosecutory investigation. Slush fund A slush fund is a fund or account used for miscellaneous income and expenses, particularly when these are corrupt or illegal . Such funds may be kept hidden and maintained separately from money that is used for legitimate purposes. Slush funds may be employed by government or corporate officials in efforts to pay influential people discreetly in return for preferential treatment, advance information (such as non-public information in financial transactions), and other services. The funds themselves may not be kept secret but

2880-478: The company had 90 employees; when he left as chairman 27 years later, it had more than 160,000. Soon after the successful completion of the Pattani-Narathiwat Highway by Hyundai Construction, Korea's construction industry began to focus its efforts on encouraging the creation of new markets in countries such as Vietnam and the Middle East. Following the decline of construction demands from Vietnam in

2944-563: The construction would only be 40 km, linking the Han River with the Nakdong River. The canal would require sufficient width, depth and height of bridge decks to allow barges passage. Major portions of the Han and Nakdong are far narrower and shallower than is required, with most of the bridges on these rivers being unsuitable as their clearance is too low. The scale of construction would be enormous;

3008-556: The country, connecting the Han River , which flows through Seoul into the Yellow Sea , to the Nakdong River , which flows through Busan into the Korea Strait . Few opponents of the project argue that, during the construction process, damage to the environment could be caused by the concrete facility. However, one study states that when environmentally friendly methods of construction (like "swamp-restoration") are adopted, there will be

3072-409: The expense of taxpayers outside of his district. After receiving US$ 18,000 from Lee, Kim wrote a letter reversing his disclosure and fled to Tajikistan. Lee resigned in 1998 before being fined US$ 6.5 million for breaking election law and forcing Kim to flee. In the by-election held after his resignation, Roh Moo-hyun was elected as his successor. In 2002, Lee ran for mayor of Seoul and won. As

3136-580: The fifth of seven children. In 1945, after the end of World War II , his family returned to his father's hometown of Pohang , in North Gyeongsang Province , then an American-occupied portion of the Korean Peninsula . Lee's sister, Lee Ki-sun, believed that they smuggled themselves into the country to avoid having the officials confiscate the property they acquired in Japan. However, their ship

3200-526: The global scene, resulting in the hosting of the 2010 G-20 Seoul summit . However, significant controversy remains in Korea regarding high-profile government initiatives which have caused some factions to engage in civil opposition and protest against the incumbent government and President Lee's Saenuri Party (formerly the Grand National Party). The reformist faction within the Saenuri Party

3264-534: The legal and systemic framework for any projects emerging from the negotiations, and called for the formation of an aid office in North Korea as a way of decoupling humanitarian aid from nuclear talks. His foreign policy initiative was called MB Doctrine , which advocates "engaging" North Korea and strengthening the US-Korean alliance. During the 2007 presidential election , questions about his relationship with

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3328-554: The project, Lee said, "Many journalists questioned me why I keep commenting on the building of the canal. However, it's a simple fact that many cities around the world were benefited by making the best use of their rivers and seas." At a special conference held on 19 June 2008, President Lee announced that he would drop the Grand Canal project if the public opposed the idea, and the premier confirmed this statement on 8 September 2008. Despite this assurance, many now accuse Lee of continuing

3392-405: The recent financial shock from the United States, President Lee emphasized the importance of solid cooperation between political and business circles. He proposed a tripartite meeting among the finance ministers of South Korea, Japan, and China aimed at coordinating policies to cope with the credit crisis . Around early 2011, Mbnomics gained a negative reputation due to tax reduction plans for

3456-400: The rich, the failure to privatize or merge large banks, and failure to provide affordable housing . The middle-aged and senior Korean population usually supported Lee Myung-bak. However, businesspeople in their 50s–60s in the construction and real estate sectors withdrew their support of Lee after the 2010 regional election and 2012 presidential election. Oh Geon-ho ( 오건호 ), the head of

3520-590: The second largest market share in Korea, after Australian beef. Lee's approval ratings reflected public perception of Korea's economic situation in the wake of the global economic meltdown. Signs of a strengthening economy and a landmark $ 40 billion deal won by a Korean consortium to build nuclear power plants in the United Arab Emirates boosted Lee's popularity. His approval rating in January 2010 stood at 51.6%. As of late 2011, Lee's administration had

3584-420: The source of the funds or how they were acquired or for what purposes they are used may be hidden. Use of slush funds to influence government activities may be viewed as subversive of the democratic process . A slush fund can also be a reserve account used to reduce fluctuations in an organization's earnings by withholding them when they are high and supplementing them when they are low. This type of slush fund

3648-506: The term economics (-nomics) to form "Mbnomics". Kang Man-Soo, the Minister of Strategy and Finance , is credited with coining the term and the design of Mbnomics. The centerpiece of Lee's economic revitalization was his "Korea 7·4·7" plan. The plan took its name from its goals: to bring 7% economic growth during his term, raise Korea's per capita income to US$ 40,000, and make Korea the world's seventh largest economy. As Lee put it, his government

3712-408: The underprivileged. Another criticism was that these appointees have mostly chosen from the nation's southeast region ( North Gyeongsang Province and South Gyeongsang Province ), which is known as a GNP stronghold. While the fact that the property owned by high officials, including ministers, increased on average, most of them were legally-obtained and inherited property. Those ministers involved in

3776-698: The welfare budget by 9% to help the poorest maintain the living and middle class's stability, and pursued many more policies for the benefit of the public than the former government. His administration further claimed that the tax reforms undertaken, including the comprehensive property tax cut was not to benefit the wealthy and the haves, but to correct a wrongful tax according to the market principle. Lee also had to face corruption charges leveled at his administration. Three appointees resigned amid suspicions of corruption, and his top intelligence chief and anticorruption aide faced accusations that they received bribes from The Samsung Group . Both Samsung and Lee denied

3840-606: Was reelected as a member of the Korean National Assembly, representing Jongno District , Seoul . One of his opponents was future president Roh Moo-hyun , who ranked third place. In 1999, Lee was a visiting scholar at the George Washington University , in Washington, DC. Into his second-term, his former secretary Kim Yoo-chan disclosed that Lee had spent excessively in his election campaign, often at

3904-437: Was at odds with Lee. He ended his five-year term on 24 February 2013, and was succeeded by Park Geun-hye . On 22 March 2018, Lee was arrested on charges of bribery, embezzlement, and tax evasion alleged to have occurred during his presidency. Prosecutors accused Lee of receiving bribes totaling 11 billion won and channeling assets of 35 billion won to an illicit slush fund . Shortly before his arrest, Lee posted

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3968-463: Was elected president of the student council. That year, Lee participated in student demonstrations against President Park Chung Hee 's Seoul-Tokyo Talks , taking issue with Japanese restitution for the colonization of the Korean Peninsula . He was charged with plotting insurrection and was sentenced to five years' probation and three years' imprisonment by the Supreme Court of Korea . He served

4032-622: Was spearheaded by South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and was declared complete on 21 October 2011. The restoration project's aims were to provide or improve water security , improve flood control , and restore ecosystem vitality. It was first announced as part of the "Green New Deal" policy launched in January 2009, and was later included in the government's five-year national plan in July 2009. The government estimated its full investment and funding totaled 22.2 trillion won (approximately US$ 17.3 billion). Although, former president Lee claimed that

4096-568: Was wrecked off the coast of Tsushima island . They lost all their belongings and barely survived. Lee personally witnessed the deaths of his older sister and a younger brother, who were killed in the bombardment of Pohang, during the Korean War . Lee attended night school at Dongji Commercial High School in Pohang and received a scholarship. A year after graduation, Lee gained admission to Korea University . In 1964, during his third year in college, Lee

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