Ruling, Opposition Parties Clash Over Semiconductor Cluster Plan

South Korea's major political parties have sharply diverged on the government's recent announcement to establish a second national semiconductor cluster in the Honam region, involving significant investments from the government, Samsung Electronics, and SK Hynix.

The ruling Democratic Party has welcomed the initiative, with floor leader Lee Ju-young stating, "We will provide full support at the parliamentary level to ensure related infrastructure construction and regulatory innovation proceed swiftly." Party acting leader Han Byung-do described the plan as a "national grand strategy" that will reshape the country's industrial landscape and determine the future of global tech giants. Kang Joon-hyun, the party's senior spokesperson, affirmed their commitment to nurturing advanced strategic industries and promoting balanced regional development.

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We will provide full support at the parliamentary level to ensure related infrastructure construction and regulatory innovation proceed swiftly.

In contrast, the conservative People Power Party has vehemently opposed the plan, labeling it a "naked face of state-controlled economics driven by political pressure." Floor leader Jeong Jeong-sik criticized it as an "unnatural decision based on state intervention rather than corporate autonomy." Park Seong-hoon, the party's chief spokesperson, called it a "declaration of war by state-controlled economics, where power seeks to seize the market." He argued that the plan unfairly benefits the Honam region with a core semiconductor fabrication plant while offering superficial projects to other regions like Yeongnam and Chungcheong under the guise of "coexistence and balanced development."

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It is a naked face of state-controlled economics driven by political pressure, and a declaration of war by state-controlled economics, where power seeks to seize the market.

Some within the People Power Party have called for a parliamentary investigation. Supreme Council member Shin Dong-wook stated, "I believe a parliamentary investigation is absolutely necessary." Regional leaders from the Daegu and Gyeongbuk areas, who had been pursuing a semiconductor front-end plant for their region, also voiced strong objections. Gyeongbuk Governor Lee Cheol-woo questioned if it was a "political decision to exclude a specific region," while Daegu Mayor-elect Chu Kyung-ho called it "national division development under the name of national balanced development."

The newly formed Cho Kuk Innovation Party supported the plan, criticizing the People Power Party's reaction as "political obstructionism." Party leader Seo Wang-jin stated, "What South Korea needs now is not an outdated state-control debate, but practical expansion of its clean energy territory." He believes the project will be a turning point for revitalizing non-metropolitan economies and broadening the nation's advanced industrial reach. Lee Jun-seok, leader of the Reform Party, however, cautioned that the government is "playing with fire" regarding semiconductors.

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Is it a political decision to exclude a specific region?