Kim Kyung-hee, Icheon City Mayor Candidate: "Icheon Must Not Be Excluded from Semiconductor Cluster Support System"

[News S = Reporter Um In-yong] Kim Kyung-hee, People Power Party Icheon City Mayor candidate, called for the withdrawal of a provision that excludes the Seoul Metropolitan Area when designating semiconductor clusters in relation to the "Semiconductor Industry Competitiveness Enhancement and Support Special Act Implementation Decree Draft."

Candidate Kim issued a statement on the 29th, stating, "Icheon is South Korea's representative semiconductor city with a semiconductor production, technology, human resources, and cooperative enterprise ecosystem centered on SK Hynix," and "the implementation decree draft must be improved to ensure that Icheon is not excluded from semiconductor cluster designation and government support systems."

Recently, concerns about the government's implementation decree draft have been spreading at the civil society level in Icheon and the southern Gyeonggi region.

At the 1st "Semiconductor Defense Icheon Citizens Rally" held on the 20th at Fountain Square in Icheon, Icheon citizens and civil society organization officials participated in calling for the withdrawal of the Seoul Metropolitan Area exclusion clause. On the 28th, the 2nd "Gyeonggi Citizens Alliance Semiconductor Defense Rally" was held at Fountain Square in Icheon, bringing together civil society groups from southern Gyeonggi including Icheon, Anseong, Yongin, and Pyeongtaek.

At the rally, citizens and civil society organization officials demanded a review of the government's implementation decree draft, and some civil society leaders even held head-shaving ceremonies to demonstrate strong opposition.

Candidate Kim emphasized, "The two rallies are not merely political events, but direct actions by citizens of Icheon and southern Gyeonggi to protect the future of the semiconductor industry and regional survival rights," and "the government and related ministries must take the voices from the field seriously."

The provision that Candidate Kim raised concerns about is Article 15 of the implementation decree draft. The provision specifies "a region outside the Seoul Metropolitan Area" as a requirement for semiconductor cluster development plan approval.

Regarding this, Candidate Kim pointed out, "This means that core semiconductor production bases in the Seoul Metropolitan Area, including Icheon, could be fundamentally excluded from semiconductor cluster designation," and "the explanations from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy alone cannot be said to have eliminated concerns about the exclusion of Icheon and Gyeonggi Province."

He continued, "The issue is not just new large-scale manufacturing facilities, but whether Icheon can be included in the national semiconductor cluster and government support systems," and "it is important to clearly reflect Icheon's position now, before the implementation decree is finalized."

Candidate Kim expressed concern that if Icheon is excluded from the semiconductor cluster, disadvantages could occur across the entire semiconductor ecosystem, including infrastructure support, cultivation of parts and materials enterprises, R&D support, and semiconductor workforce development.

In particular, he explained that since Icheon has been subject to development and industrial development constraints due to overlapping regulations such as natural conservation zones for over 40 years, designation as a semiconductor cluster is an important opportunity to secure regulatory exceptions and administrative and financial support.

He also stated, "If designated as a semiconductor cluster, we can actually implement R&D research complexes, parts and materials complexes, infrastructure expansion, and workforce development projects," and "we must not take the implementation decree draft issue lightly for strengthening Icheon's future industrial competitiveness."

He also emphasized the necessity of linking Icheon and Yongin Wonsam semiconductor clusters, stating, "Yongin is not an unrelated third party to Icheon, but a target for mutual prosperity linked around SK Hynix," and "only by developing both Icheon's existing production base and Yongin Wonsam's new expansion base can the southern Gyeonggi semiconductor belt be completed and South Korea's semiconductor competitiveness further strengthened."

Finally, Candidate Kim stated, "The government must withdraw the clause 'a region outside the Seoul Metropolitan Area' from Article 15 of the implementation decree draft and prepare supplementary provisions to ensure that existing core semiconductor production bases in the Seoul Metropolitan Area are not excluded from cluster designation and support targets," and "I will respond to the end to ensure that Icheon is not excluded from the semiconductor cluster and government support systems."