Seoul: The government and the ruling Democratic Party (DP) have confirmed their plans to initiate the nation's first comprehensive survey of farmland ownership to address concerns over the use of farmland for speculative purposes. This decision was reached during a meeting between DP lawmakers and agricultural ministry officials at the National Assembly, emphasizing the necessity to ensure that farmland owners are directly engaged in farming activities.

According to Yonhap News Agency, this initiative aims to uphold the land-to-the-tiller principle enshrined in the Constitution and develop systematic policies by verifying the actual ownership and usage of rural land. Rep. Yoon Joon-byeong informed reporters that authorities will particularly focus on conducting in-depth surveys of farmland located near major metropolitan areas and in zones where land transaction permissions are required.

The authorities plan to implement strict measures, including mandating the sale of land, if speculative ownership is identified. The survey will unfold in two phases, beginning this year with farmland acquired since 1996, and continuing next year with a focus on farmland acquired before 1996.

During the same meeting, the officials also considered additional reform measures aimed at overhauling NongHyup, the national agricultural cooperative and banking group, which has been embroiled in a series of corruption scandals. The reform plan includes altering the election system of the NongHyup chairman from an indirect voting system to a direct voting system, enabling all 1.87 million members to participate.

This decision follows a special audit of NongHyup, revealing irregularities such as possible embezzlement of public funds, preferential loan agreements, and accounting fraud.