一个新的地方城市？
Korea to Move Capital
In early July, the Korean government announced that they have picked a site in Yeongi-Gongju in Chung-cheong province for the future capital.
Chosen from a list of four potential sites, Yeongi-Gongju lies 160km south of Seoul and is easily accessible from the capital and other major cities. The new capital is expected to host 85 key administrative, legislative and judiciary bodies. It will have about 500,000 residents initially, although experts believe the number will eventually grow to two or three million.
In contrast, nearly 48 percent of the nation's population, or 23 million people, live in the Seoul Metropolitan area, ①accounting for 11.8 percent of the country's total land area. A presidential panel found that the excessive concentration of development in the Seoul metropolitan area, which includes Gyeonggi province, undermined its contribution to national growth.
Out of the top 100 international businesses, it pointed out that only one has established its Asian head office in Seoul compared with 22 in Hong Kong and 12 in Singapore. So the move, the panel hopes, will enable Seoul to focus more on becoming North-east Asia's economic hub by getting rid of many restrictive business regulations. It will also spread the capital's wealth to underdeveloped regions.The move can take place in 2007 and be completed by 2030, the panel concluded.
韩国想换个首都
7月初，韩国政府宣布，忠清道燕岐—公州地区某地被选为未来首都的所在地。
燕岐—公州地区是从4个有望中选的地区中脱颖而出的，它位于汉城以南160公里，与首都汉城和其它重要城市之间相距不远，交通便利。这一新首都预期会成为85个重要行政、立法和司法机关的所在地。该地区最初将拥有50万居民，但专家们却认为这一数字最终会增至200到300万。
相形之下，全国人口中有将近48%，即2300万人，居住在汉城大都市区，而这一地区占全国国土总面积的11.8%。总统委员会发现，对于包括京畿道在内的汉城大都市区的开发过分集中，而这削弱了该地区对全国整体发展所做的贡献。
该委员会指出，在全球100强企业当中，只有一家在汉城建立了亚洲总部，而香港和新加坡则分别拥有22和12家企业总部。因此，该委员会希望这一举措能使汉城在摆脱众多限制性的通商规定以后能集中更多的精力，把自己建成东北亚的经济中心。这一举措还可以使欠发达地区分享到首都的财富。该委员会推定，这一举措将在2007年实施，于2030年结束。
