President Lee Jae-myung on the 25th, regarding the "farmland sale order" measure, said, "If someone lies that they will farm and acquires farmland but then does not farm, we will respect the constitutional principle of land-to-the-tiller and have it disposed of according to the law." This was a direct clarification after he emphasized solving real estate problems at the cabinet meeting the day before, saying "even farmland has become a target for speculation," as criticism arose in some quarters that inherited farmland and the like would be forcibly sold.
On this day, Lee posted on X (formerly Twitter) an article titled "The target of the farmland sale order is not inherited farmland or farmland that is inevitably left fallow due to old age after farming," and wrote, "It refers to farmland acquired by submitting a farming plan claiming to personally farm for speculative purposes, and then left fallow or leased out after purchase."
After mentioning the constitutional principle of land-to-the-tiller (only those who farm may own farmland) and the related Farmland Act, Lee said, "Only those who will personally farm may acquire farmland, and they must submit a farming plan detailing how they will personally farm," adding, "If this is violated and one does not personally farm, the law specifies that a sale order is to be issued after due process."
He also mentioned the farmland reform of the Rhee Syng-man administration. Lee said, "There are people who, not understanding the principle of land-to-the-tiller, talk about communists in response to my instruction to issue sale orders," adding, "It was President Rhee Syng-man who enshrined the principle of land-to-the-tiller in the Constitution and forcibly acquired the land of landlords who did not farm, then distributed it to farmers." The farmland reform pushed by former President Rhee Syng-man is assessed as having expanded owner-farmers and achieved social stabilization.
Lee said, "The Rhee Syng-man administration's farmland distribution under the principle of land-to-the-tiller became the foundation of South Korea's economic development," adding, "This is why, even if one cannot recognize President Rhee Syng-man for various reasons such as the massacre of civilians, the achievement of implementing farmland distribution is still highly valued," and said, "President Rhee Syng-man is not a 'red' communist."