Concerns and backlash emerged from local communities today (the 3rd) after the government announced a plan to integrate the four regional port authorities into a single entity.

While the government aims to enhance operational efficiency and port competitiveness through the integration, local communities are pushing back, arguing that it could undermine the unique characteristics and autonomy of each port and run counter to decentralization.

During a press conference on the relocation of administrative and public institutions and public institution functional reforms held on this day, the government announced plans to merge the Busan Port Authority, Incheon Port Authority, Ulsan Port Authority, and Yeosu Gwangyang Port Authority into a tentatively named "Korea Port Authority."

The plan is to reorganize the four port authorities into regional branches to carry out region-specific projects.

The government explained that the integration aims to reduce overlapping functions and cutthroat competition among port authorities while improving organizational efficiency.

Heo Jang, Vice Minister of Economy and Finance, explained at the press conference, "We will preemptively respond to rapid policy environment changes and future demands by strategically rearranging the functions of public institutions related to national infrastructure, such as energy and ports."

Prime Minister Han Sung-sook also stated, "At the root of many large and small problems currently facing South Korea are the Seoul metropolitan area-centric single-pole system and territorial imbalance. The announced policies will serve as a symbolic and practical turning point for easing overconcentration in the metropolitan area and creating regional growth engines in connection with the promotion of mega-projects and the 5-pole-3-special growth engines."

However, unions representing workers at all four port authorities expressed unanimous opposition to the government's integration plan.

The labor unions of the Busan, Incheon, Ulsan, and Yeosu Gwangyang port authorities issued a joint statement on this day, pointing out, "Physical integration ignores the characteristics of regional ports and goes against global trends in port operation."

They emphasized, "Recentralizing the port authorities, which were created to overcome the limitations of centralization, goes against the times. The integration of the four port authorities, which lacks justification and consensus, must be withdrawn."

Civic societies and local governments in each region where port authorities are located also voiced continuous opposition.

An official from the Incheon Port Development Council said, "Incheon Port is the gateway port of the metropolitan area and a core national infrastructure responsible for trade with China. Integrating them into a single organization simply because they share similar functions is an action that ignores the reality of ports."

They added, "This will ultimately result in redundant administration resembling a 'roof over a roof.' We oppose the integration of port authorities, which was pushed forward without prior consultation with the local community and without regard for the unique characteristics of each port and its impact on the local economy."

In Gwangyang, opposition to the integration was raised on the grounds that the independence of the port authority is directly linked to the local economy.

Gwangyang Mayor Park Sung-hyun, a former president of the Yeosu Gwangyang Port Authority, stated, "The Yeosu Gwangyang Port Authority is the only national public institution headquartered in the eastern region of South Jeolla and Gwangju. Gwangyang Port serves as the foundation of the local economy by supporting the Gwangyang Steelworks and the Yeosu National Industrial Complex, reducing logistics costs for raw material imports and product exports, and creating quality jobs."

Concerns were also raised that a uniform integration could actually diminish competitiveness, given that each port has different functions and hinterland industries.

Six organizations in the Busan region, including the Maritime Capital Busan Development Council, said in an emergency statement, "Major global ports are fiercely competing based on the expertise and autonomy of each port, rather than through uniform integration. Bundling port authorities with completely different functions, hinterland industries, and development strategies into a single centralized organization and downgrading existing port authorities into regional branches is highly likely to weaken the expertise, autonomy, and rapid decision-making capabilities of each port."

Local political circles also expressed concern that the integration of port authorities could weaken the autonomy and specialized functions of regional ports.

Democratic Party lawmaker Jung Il-young (Incheon Yeonsu-eul) issued a press release on this day, asserting, "We cannot accept the plan to downgrade the Incheon Port Authority to a regional branch of the integrated corporation. This is a significant change that could weaken the independence and autonomous policy and business decision-making power of the Incheon Port Authority."

People Power Party lawmaker Kim Ki-hyun, whose constituency is Buk-gu, Ulsan, where the Ulsan Port Authority is located, also expressed concern, saying, "The government's fait accompli-style, hasty integration could rather lead to a decline in logistics competitiveness."

He pointed out, "Integrating the four port authorities, which are distributed to suit regional characteristics, neither aligns with the original legislative intent of the Port Authority Act nor goes in line with the policies of decentralization and balanced national development. In particular, Ulsan Port is specialized in petrochemicals and energy, and I am worried about whether this differentiation can be maintained after the integration."

The city councils of three cities in the eastern region of South Jeolla and Gwangju—Yeosu, Suncheon, and Gwangyang—had already urged the suspension of the integration of the four port authorities nationwide, including the Yeosu Gwangyang Port Authority, while announcing a plan for joint response to regional issues last month on August 18.

On the other hand, some opinions suggest that while the government's intent to enhance efficiency through public institution reform is understandable, whether this integration will actually lead to strengthened port competitiveness needs to be scrutinized.

The Busan Maritime Power Pan-Citizen Promotion Council said in a statement, "Verifying the actual extent of the cutthroat competition and functional overlap between ports presented by the government as the grounds for integration should come first. The principle of reinvesting profits by port, investment priorities, and asset and debt management standards must be disclosed first."

It added, "Before rushing the integration of port authorities, we strongly urge a re-verification of the integration policy based on the international competitiveness of South Korea's ports."

Jung Young-seok, a professor in the Division of Maritime Law at Korea Maritime & Ocean University, stated, "While integration has the advantage of adjusting functions among port authorities and improving operational efficiency, considering that each port authority has developed over the past 25 years in a direction that closely engages with local communities and expands autonomy, this integration also has aspects of turning back that trend."

He added, "Currently, each port authority manages ports in consultation with its respective region, but if integrated into a single corporation, conflicts of interest may arise between regions over which region to invest in and how much of the profits generated from the ports to allocate. If integration is pursued, not only the functions of the port authorities but also the division of roles with related institutions must be re-established together."

(Photo: Yonhap News)