Threats of North Korea

I've been seeing a fair number of posts on Facebook and I've been asked about the situation by my family, so I thought I would write a little blurb about what's been happening with North Korea.

This won't turn into some advertisement for living in South Korea, nor should it by any means be read like I have a degree in some form of international relations. But because I'm living here in South Korea, and because I've been reading articles posted by Korea, Canada, England, and America I do want to share my thoughts.

The world is not going to end.

South Koreans have become numb and deaf to the threats of the North for the most part. Threats are a preferred strategy for North Korea in order to get other countries into negotiations with them, as they are in constant need of more food and money.

But with the young, new leader, who many think is incompetent and being controlled by men behind the scenes, as well as the types of threats being made, and the form of rhetoric being used, there are some who do worry. Kim Jong-un did not have the training his father had. He wasn't even known to the world until shortly before the death of his father. Will he do something stupid? Will he go too far? Does he want to assert himself as a leader to be taken seriously, or even feared? These are questions that even I myself wonder.

Life here is normal, though. No one is stocking up on food or emptying their bank accounts. People still laugh and go to movies, bars, and shopping malls. I haven't been instructed to locate any shelters near my house. The situation with North Korea has not impacted daily life.

But there is some cause for concern. Not in the vastly out of proportion way you can find  in any American article where fear is a top seller for news, but in a more honest, suspenseful way. As I was talking to my co-teacher about all of this, she pointed out how South Koreans should be more aware of North Korea. That being numb to their threats isn't really such a good thing. To paraphrase her, 'North Korea is the biggest threat to South Korea.' The situation isn't dire and no one is afraid for their life, but if something can hurt South Korea, it's probably the North.

The North has cut the military hotline that runs between North and South Korea, but it's not the first time. And the line for air-traffic between the two Koreas is still open, so not ALL communication has been cut-off. However, just this week the North has blocked South Korean entrance into the Kaesong complex, a joint industrial zone (this happened before in 2009). Still, I think this is a bit of a bigger deal because this zone makes so much money for the North. How much further will it escalate?

Hopefully not much more.

China is telling everyone to calm down. Russia is sending warnings. America is on stand-by waiting to "defend its ally". But still, I think this is a war no one wants, and that the hope is that it doesn't happen. If Korea went to war, there would be casualties- mostly Korean. And, after it ended, Kim Jong-un would likely lose everything. Is that something he would risk? I really don't think so.
(However, it has been pointed out that if the Koreas ever did reconcile, that the natural resources, products made, and work ethics here, when combined, would make Korea into quite a wealthy country. But who wants to lose power right now?)

So, everyone... Yes. There are threats. And, yes, North Korea is able to inflict a bit of damage if it decides to do so. But the consensus on this matter seems to be that it's unlikely. There is a bit of uneasiness when I think about the situation, but I'm not afraid. A little worried and anxious for the outcome, but I think I worried more about what score I was going to get back from my final exam at Sogang University last semester.

If you want to follow news on North Korea with BBC, here is the link, but please don't fret too much. If the situation becomes dire, the embassies will contact all of the foreigners here. Although, there are many reasons I hope that phone call never comes. I don't want to leave yet, and I don't want my Korean friends to be in danger or dragged into a war. But, again, it's unlikely.

Kim Jong-un, whatcha gonna do~?


I don't know if this helped, or will help, but this is how I feel. I can't put you at ease, and it's nonsensical to hype you up. But I can tell you not to freak out. Seriously, don't. All anyone can do now is wait and see what happens.

Have any thoughts? Comment or let me know :)

It's All About Results

The election closed last night. It was a close race, and the outcome was heavily anticipated, but the winner who emerged was Saenuri's Park Geun-Hye with 51.6 percent. The turn-out for this election was the largest it had been in 15 years, with 75.8 percent of the eligible population voting. After winning, she gave no big, formal speech, but thanked her supporters and acknowledged her opponents.

Park Geun-Hye said that visiting the graves of her parents would be the first thing she would do after winning the election. Following their footsteps, she will soon move into the Blue House. She and her supporters hope to unify Koreans and bring happiness to the people and prosperity to the economy.

Still, as the days lead to her occupying office, there are definite concerns she must deal with:
-the slowing economic growth
-the disappearing middle-class
-relations with North Korea
-welfare for a 'rapidly aging population'

There is a debate on whether she can handle these issues, but her supporters are sure that she is capable. I understand that I am an outsider, and thus have little insight into the matter, but what I wonder is how much of their faith in her is due to her father? An article from The Guardian quotes a woman saying, '"She will save our country. Her father rescued the country."' Can she live up to her father's name? The economy-saving bit only, of course...

Her father aside, will she herself be able to step up to the plate? For the sake of Korea, I hope so.

I understand the bitterness that some supporters of Moon Jae-In must be feeling right now. It's hard to rally behind a president that you did not elect, a president in whom you don't have faith. I hope she earns it. I hope she fulfills the promises she made during her candidacy.

Good luck, Korea! 대한민국 화이팅!

2012 South Korean Presidential Elections

Here in South Korea these days, one can see banners with candidate names and numbers and groups of supporters singing and chanting as the election day draws near. The 18th presidential election will take place December 19, 2012. Under what is now the sixth constitution since the split of the Koreas, the president may only hold a single term of five years.

I've been quite curious about the policies of all running candidates, as well as how the election process itself works. One thing I've seen and fully support is the prominence of multiple parties (more than two), although there are three major parties. And even within the parties the mindsets of the members differ slightly. There are seven names on the ballot- one from each of the major parties, and four independents.

The current/former president, Lee Myung-Bak, is of the Saenuri party. He came to the position with 70% approval, although earlier this year it had fallen to 30% approval. He feels that English education can aid in the road to success. He also supported the South Korea-United States Free Trade Agreement, and was a part of the Jeju-do Naval Base (quite controversial).

Also in the Saenuri party is Park Geun-Hye. Prior to this year, the party was actually called the Grand National Party, but there was a lot of fighting within the party and a few image problems. From what I have read, it seems that several other things in the party have changed since she gained control of the party. With Lee Myung-Bak's ratings, it makes sense that she would want to distance herself from his image. There is much support for her, as her father Park Chung-Hee was a former president (some use 'dictator' instead) and her parents were assassinated, and much distaste for her. The distaste comes from her "secretive ways" and lack of knowledge of working class life. Here is an excerpt I found on a Wiki article about the 2012 election:

"..during another debate on Aug. 8, the moderator asked Park the minimum hourly rate for a part-time worker as of 2012. Park replied “I think it’s over 5,000 won, isn’t it?,” when the legal minimum wage was 4,580 won. In response, The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions responded with a statement in which it said, “It is terribly discouraging when a person who wants to become president does not even know the country’s minimum wage, which is a minimal right for survival and the first step toward a welfare state.”"

Still, she would like to win the trust of the public and serve the people. Her slogan this election is, " A Country Where My Dreams Can Come True / Readied Female President." 

I think the story of her father is interesting, though, so I'm going to talk about that for a bit... Her father seized power with a military coup/revolution in 1961 for the sake of the country (he completely turned around the economy for the better). Her mother was shot in 1974, leaving her to act as the First Lady until her father was assassinated by his chief spy in 1979 (after losing the election, he rewrote the constitution to give himself further ruling). According to an article on channelnewsasia.com, "Many in South Korea acknowledge her father's contributions to the Korean economy, though many also remember a long history of torture and other abuses of power under his rule." 

So that is the story of Saenuri's Park Geun-Hye, a front-runner of this election. Her biggest competition, the other runner at the front, actually used to protest the rule of her father. His name is Moon Jae-In. The former student activist said, "When I was living in poverty, she was living the life of a princess in the Blue House... When I was fighting against dictatorship, she was at the heart of it."

Juicy, isn't it?

Moon Jae-In belongs to the United Democratic Party. He, too, is known by the public as he was Chief of Staff to Roh Moon-Hyun, the president before the current Lee Myung-Bak. Being well-known is great, but Roh Moon-Hyun left a pretty sour position for Moon Jae-In to be in... While Roh was in office, his support fell drastically. He couldn't seem to complete projects, turned on his supporters, and was persecuted by the conservative party. Even after his term ended he was investigated for bribery charges. The ill sentiments once held toward Roh are now being used as spectacles for looking at Moon Jae-In. His slogan this election is, "People come first."

Reports say that the youth (as always, isn't it?) will be the biggest pull in who wins the election. The way it works in Korea is that whoever wins the most votes wins the presidency- they have a first-past-the-post system in place. Park is currently in the lead, but Moon is not far behind.

Great! This is really interesting, but still... What I want to know are their personal policies. The Prime Minister, even if he has to be approved by the National Assembly-the legislature of 299 seats, is still appointed by the president. I'm finding it difficult to find personal stances, but the positions each party general holds is easy to find.

As it is elsewhere, general policies can be aligned with their party. Let's take a look at the three major parties (basically a summary from Daily Kos):

Saenuri- conservative. They favor big business, especially toward family-owned conglomerates such as LG, Samsung, and Hyundai. Many of these companies also have a family member serving as an assembly member. They are anti-North Korea, anti-communism, and pro-America, so they support the SK-US Free Trade Agreement. They desire an export-driven economy, subsidies, and tax breaks. Their popularity is with older generations and southeastern provinces.

Democratic United Party- liberal. They favor greater regulations of these family-owned conglomerates and are against free trade agreements. They support smaller business who get pushed out because of big business, and have ties to more moderate trade unions. They would also like to "thaw" relations with North Korea a bit, and they have mixed feelings concerning the presence of the US military. Their popularity is with younger generations and southwestern provinces.

Unified Progressive Party- progressive. Here we find those who support and are supported by leftist trade unions and often farmers, who are at the mercy of big business and the government, both of which consume their land as the country is small and land is important. Cheap imports also cause trouble to such people. They have pro-North Korea sentiments, and are anti-American -mostly concerning the economy and business.

Socially, there is less of a difference between parties. Abortion is illegal unless it is to save a woman's life and homosexuality is a taboo topic- 30% of the population is Christian, and I'm sure that this is at least a bit of the reason.

I'm sure it would be nice to vote for a candidate based purely on their business and economic policies... Since, you know, that's what their job is. As an outsider, it seems more cut-and-dry than our messy socially-driven elections.

Anyway, that's what I was able to find today. It's not exactly what I was looking for, but I feel more well-informed. And that's never a bad thing.

Here are the links I looked at today in case anyone is curious or wants to know more:

Wiki SK Election 2012 , Roh Moon-Hyun , Sixth Republic , 7 Candidates , Daily Kos , Election News

I'll post again if I find anything else that I feel is relevant, and I definitely want to post about the results!

-Kaitlin