Lim Hyun-taek, the president-elect of the Korean Medical Association(KMA), said there will be no dialogue with the government without the withdrawal of a plan to increase the medical school admissions quota by two-thousand.

At a press conference on Friday, Lim, known to be a hardliner against state policies, blamed the government and the ruling People Power Party(PPP) for the prolonged medical vacuum stemming from trainee doctors' collective action in protest of the hike. He called on the ruling camp to make policies that allow for the doctors to return to work.

Addressing the government's calls for the medical community to engage in talks without preconditions, Lim said it was not worth commenting on.

Lim criticized the government for failing to look after public safety and health and the PPP for failing to mediate, adding that when looking at the overall context of the matter, he had said the number of doctors should, in fact, be reduced in phases.

As for an earlier pledge to stage a general strike of doctors, Lim said he had meant that the KMA would not sit idly by if the government moves to suppress trainee doctors, medical students or professors.