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| President Moon Jae-in delivers a speech as North Korean leader Kim Jong-un listens in front of Pyongyang citizens during the mass games performance titled "The Glorious Country" at May Day Stadium in Pyongyang in this Sept. 19, file photo. / Korea Times file. |
By Park Ji-won
Almost half of the South Koreans surveyed want for North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to deliver an address at the National Assembly if he visits Seoul, according to results released Monday.
The survey, conducted by Realmeter, showed 46.7 percent of the respondents said they want to see North Korean leader Kim Jong-un deliver a speech at the National Assembly, while 40.2 percent opposed it. The remaining 13.1 percent were unsure or declined to answer. The poll was conducted among a random sample of 503 adults aged over 19 across the nation.
The figure came amid speculation that the North's leader may visit the South soon to implement inter-Korean agreement made in September. During a joint declaration between two Korean leaders held on sidelines of the inter-Korean summit in Pyongyang, Kim Jong-un announced his determination to visit Seoul before the end of this year.
Calls rose for Kim to make an address in front of South Korean citizens as President Moon Jae-in did in Pyongyang.
Amid growing speculations about Kim's possible visit to Seoul, presidential office Cheong Wa Dae remained cautious saying that there is "no sign of progress."
Specifically, more than 70 percent of liberals approved Kim's visit, while about 70 percent of conservatives opposed it. Among centrists, 47.2 percent approved Kim's visit while 40.4 percent said they are against it.
More people from the Jeolla Provinces and Seoul, people in their 30s and 40s, supporters of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and the Justice Party and liberals are in favor of Kim's visit while more people from Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province and people aged over 60, supporters of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP), Bareunmirae Party and nonpartisan group and conservatives are against it.
Meanwhile, Moon's approval rating rebounded for the first time in 10 weeks amid expectations of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's possible visit to Seoul within this year.
Moon's approval rating increased to 49.5 percent last week, up 1.1 percentage points from a week ago, according to a poll by the same pollster, Monday.
Moon's approval rating dipped under 50 percent two weeks ago due to the ruling camp's poor economic performance, as well as a reflection of the withdrawal of support for the government since September when the third inter-Korean summit was held in Pyongyang. The approval rating has increased 1.4 percentage points since last week.
Moon Jae-in administration's approval rating moved between 50 and 70 percent since he assumed the office of President, possibly due to peaceful momentum on the Korean Peninsula during the inter-Korean summits.
The poll gauging the approval rating was conducted among a random sample of 2,516 adults aged over 19, reached on landlines or cell phones across the nation.
The support rating for the ruling DPK rose 0.2 percentage points compared to a week earlier when it was at 38.2 percent, the weekly survey showed.
The number of those opposed to the LKP fell 1.7 percentage points to 24.7 percent, the first drop in six weeks.
