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South Korea, starting with a lower per capita income in 1981 when Mahathir became Prime Minister, took 15 years to become a fully developed nation in 1996 while this goal is still elusive to Malaysia after 22 years and need 40 years to reach the goal   Media Statement by Lim Kit Siang (Petaling Jaya, Thursday): The  parliamentary  debate on the Mid-Term Review of the Eighth Malaysia Plan, presented by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad as his last parliamentary task this morning, must be an appraisal of the government’s  economic performance and development record not only of the past two-and-a-half years of the Eighth Malaysia Plan but also the past 22 years of Mahathir’s premiership.  Although credit must be given to Mahathir for presiding over considerable development success in his 22 years as Prime Minister, two questions that should be considered are: firstly whether Malaysia could have achieved greater economic progress during this period; and secondly, whether other important human development measures, such as the rule of law, democracy, human rights, a free press, accountability, transparency, public integrity  and good governance should have been allowed to suffer so grievously during this period. In debating the Eighth Malaysia Plan Mid-Term Review, Parliament should probe one important question – why Malaysia has lagged so behind South Korea, not  only in economic development but also in other human development measures on democracy and human rights. South Korea, starting with a lower per capita income in 1981 when Mahathir became Prime Minister, took 15 years to become a fully developed nation in 1996 when it joined the OECD  while this goal is still elusive to Malaysia after 22 years – and would require 40 years if the Vision 2020 of Malaysia becoming a fully developed nation status is achieved. When Mahathir became Prime Minister in  1981, Malaysia had a higher per capita income of US$1,840 than South Korea which lagged behind with US$1,700. Two decades later, South Korea's per capita income had increased by leaps and bounds at the annual rate of 9.36 per cent, while Malaysia lagged behind with a slower growth at 3.96% per annum. As a result, South Korea's per capita income in 2001 has not only overtaken that of Malaysia, but is 2.5 times higher. South Korea's per capita income for 2001 is US$9,400 as compared to Malaysia's per capita income of US$3,640.  In purchasing power parity (PPP) terms for 2002, South Korea’s GDP per capita is US$19,400 as compared to Malaysia’s US$9,300.   (30/10/2003) * Lim Kit Siang, DAP National Chairman