Starting July 1st 2006, Jeju-do became an autonomous region of Korea (특별자치도, 特別自治道 or special self-governing province). Jeju-do now has the ability to govern itself in every aspect except for foreign affairs and national defense; thus, administration, economic strategy, social services, environmental regulations etc. will be controlled by the government of the island. This also includes aspects interesting to expats such as taxation and granting visas. The ultimate goal is to turn Jeju-do into a internationally-renowned region such as Hong Kong, Singapore or the island of Madeira owned by Portugal, where companies have an easier time doing business than on the Korean mainland. A word often used in the media to describe this goal is Hongapore (홍가포르). Whether this will prove to be true or not remains to be seen, as there are a large number of differences between Jeju-do and these places.
With lower taxation the government of Jeju-do hopes to bring in a large number of companies both from within Korea and abroad, and through this companies such as Daum Communications have moved their head offices to the island. Visa-free travel has been extended to more countries than the mainland, for a total of 180 countries. Notable countries that do not need visas to travel to Jeju-do that would otherwise need them for the mainland include the People's Republic of China, Mongolia, Philippines, Vietnam, Nepal, Myanmar (Burma), Laos, Cambodia, Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka.
Foreigners in specialized fields such as investment, IT and trade will have their visas extended from 2~3 years to 4~5.
Self-regulated elementary and middle schools, international schools and completely foreign-owned medical institutions can now be set up on Jeju-do.
In March 2006 the government announced that the period of tax exemption for acquisition tax (취득세), registration tax (등록세) and property tax (재산세) for foreign companies that invest 10 million dollars and above would be increased from seven years to fifteen. Domestic companies investing this amount were originally given three years of tax exemption followed by two years at a 50% rate, but after March 2006 this was extended to a full exemption for a period of ten years.
[edit] Inaugural ceremony
The ceremony to mark the beginning of Jeju-do's autonomy was held at the Jeju International Convention Center. The governor of the island, Kim Taehwan (김태환) was present.
[edit] Other changes
The previously existing two counties and two cities on the island have been merged into two cities, namely Jeju and Seogwipo. This gives the city of Jeju a total of 80% of the population of the island now, for a total of approximately 400,000 people.
In education, the citizens of Jeju-do will now directly choose the the superintendent of educational affairs and the educational committee. Foreign-run elementary and junior high schools may be set up, as well as international high schools and programs in universities that are internationally run and managed.
Jeju-do now has its own police force. The national police service now on the island will remain, but the new Jeju-do police service will take over traffic, security of public buildings, environment, health and sanitation issues under the direction of the governor of the island and the director of the service.
Here are some terms used regarding Jeju-do and its autonomy:
- 도민 (島民) - people, citizens. 도 is 島 for island, and compares with the word 국민 (國民) used on the mainland.
[edit] Issues
Some issues that may hamper Jeju-do's goal of being an internationally-known free economic zone include:
- International schools may not be set up if they are for profit
- Tax rate: the business tax rate in Jeju-do is 25%, compared to 17.5% for Hong Kong and 20% for Singapore. A request was made in 2005 to reduce the rate in Jeju-do to 13%, but this was turned down.
- Authority for development of harbours and such large projects still lies with the Korean government.
- Language: Hong Kong and Singapore both have a population largely capable of communicating in both English and Chinese. Jeju-do is lacking in this.
[edit] Path to autonomy
The reason for making Jeju-do into a special autonomous area was largely for practical reasons; as an island it is remote compared to other regions and strategies carried out by the central government would be limited in their effectiveness. In addition to that with a new system in place Jeju-do was thought to be an ideal area that could be brought into line with international standards without having to wait for the rest of the country to come to an agreement.
The first piece of legislation brought it towards the autonomy of Jeju-do was the "Jeju-do Special Development Law" (제주도개발특별법) in 1991, and the next one was in 2001 called the "International Free City Special Law" (국제자유도시특별법). The referendum on the full autonomy of Jeju-do was held on July 27, 2005, and after receiving a majority the law to bring Jeju-do full autonomy (제주도 행정체제 등에 관산 특별법 or the Special Law on the Administrative System of Jeju-do et al.) was passed in the National Assembly at the end of December 2005.
[edit] Historical independence
As the kingdom of Tamna (탐라국, 耽羅國), Jeju-do was independent a number of times throughout history. After the fall of Shilla in 935 it became independent for three years until subjugated by the Goryeo Dynasty, though still with a large amount of independence. It maintained local autonomy until 1404 when it was placed under central control of the Joseon Dynasty.
[edit] Language
- See Jeju dialect.
It is not known what effect autonomy will have on the use of the dialect in everyday life.
[edit] Sources
