korea focus - january 2012

Table of Contents

- Korea Focus - January 2012 - TOC - Politics 1. Unification Pot can be the First step 2. A Small Peace in Kaesong 3. Mobile Phone Craze in North Korea 4. Korea’s Choice for Global Partnership of Sharing 5. Aid Focused on Development Effectiveness for Recipients - Economy 1. A Key Lies in Inter-Korean Economic Cooperation 2. KORUS FTA Opens New Window of Opportunity 3. Meaning of KORUS FTA 4. Occupy Yourselves - Society 1. The ‘Silent Generation’ in Korea 2. Why They Are Threatened by Twitter 3. How to Communicate with the 2040 Generation 4. ‘Anger Index’ of Young People in Korea and Japan 5. Korean Technology beyond Motherboards and Displays - Culture 1. Jeju Island Becomes Humanity’s Treasure 2. Tripitaka Koreana Festival Celebrates Cultural Creativity 3. Japan Returns Looted Documents after 100 Years 4. The Bibimbap Fever in Japan 5. Image of Koreans across a Century - Essay 1. Kaesong Industrial Complex Development and Inter-Korean Relations 2. Korea’s ODA Policy and its Role as a Bridge between Advanced and Developing Countries 3. In Search of the Roots of the Hallyu

4. Three Kings of K-Pop Riding the Crest of the Korean Wave - Feature 1. Priest-Doctor Suffers ‘Divine Depression’ after Lifetime Service for the Needy - BookReview 1. Shin Kyung-sook’s Seven Perspectives Returned Homeward 2. Cells of the City Inviting Alleys and Small Buildings - Interview 1. Hyun Jung-hwa: ‘In both table tennis and life, a lucky ball isn’t really a lucky ball.’ - COPYRIGHT

- Unification Pot can be the First step

- A Small Peace in Kaesong

- Mobile Phone Craze in North Korea

- Korea’s Choice for Global Partnership of Sharing

- Aid Focused on Development Effectiveness for Recipients

‘Unification Pot’ Can be the First Step

Park Jong-chul Director, Center for Unification Policy Studies Korea Institute for National Unification

The first step to preparations for unification has already been taken. The

Ministry of Unification is seeking ways to raise a minimum amount of 55

trillion won for national unification. The ministry plans to raise the funds by

opening a special account that will include money from the Inter-Korean

Cooperation Fund, private and public sector contributions and money raised

under other laws. This fund is the so-called “unification pot.”

The ministry based the target amount on joint research by various think tanks,

including the Korea Institute for National Unification. Assuming that

reunification starts in 20 years, estimates for the amount of money needed in

the first year of reunification range from 55 trillion won to 227 trillion won.

Previous estimates of unification costs were based either on the cost of

German reunification or a quantitative macroeconomic model for improving

the North’s economy to a certain level of the South’s. The wide differences in

estimates suggest significant variations in cost projections.

The latest estimate was made by aggregating the prospective unification costs

in the political, military, economic, social and cultural sectors. This method is

advantageous because it reflects the economic situation at the time of

unification and fund-raising methods can be pursued in different sectors.

Previous unification discussions tended to focus on overall policy measures to

integrate the two Koreas rather than practical plans to financially prepare for

reunification.

The unification fund-raising initiative is aimed at proclaiming the nation’s firm

commitment to unification and asking for cooperation from home and abroad.

It also aims to emphasize that unification will be possible through practical

preparations, not through slogans and propaganda. The question is how to win

the people’s support and sympathy for raising and reserving the fund.

Unification is needed to remove the various tangible and intangible expenses

both Koreas have to bear due to division. With the passage of time, the rising

cost of division will accumulate and pose a hurdle to the Korean nation’s

efforts to move ahead. Moreover, unification will bring about tangible and

intangible benefits to the nation. In other words, unification is needed to

eliminate the cost of division as well as to attain new momentum for national

development.

Unification can come either suddenly or gradually. Regardless of how it

occurs, we must thoroughly prepare to build a unified nation. It is desirable to

concentrate time and energy on preparing for unification cool-headedly, rather

than sticking to political debates on types or methods of unification. For

example, a concrete blueprint of a unified Korea should be prepared, along

with careful measures to achieve political stability, economic development in

the North Korean region, and socio-psychological integration after unification.

In addition, our society needs to strengthen its overall capability in preparation

for unification. To cultivate the ability to absorb the shock of unification,

comprehensive measures should be sought to enhance operations in political,

economic and educational systems and social welfare.

The launch of the unification fund is nothing but the first step. The nation has

to exert full-fledged efforts to achieve unification in the days ahead. To

minimize the unification cost, inter-Korean exchange and cooperation must be

expanded while urging the North to reform and open up. At the same time, the

nation needs to use wisdom to create an atmosphere conducive to unification

in and outside the country by building peace and increasing cooperation

between the two Koreas.

[JoongAng Ilbo, November 29, 2011]

www.koreafocus.or.kr


A Small Peace in Kaesong

Jung Geun Chairman, Busan Medical Association Executive Director, Green Doctors

I visited North Korea for the first time in 2004, in order to open a hospital at

the Kaesong (Gaeseong) Industrial Complex across the border. The first

encounter between South and North Korean medical staffs was awkward in

every way. But soon afterwards, I was surprised to find North Koreans speak

the same language as we do. I said in my heart, “Uh oh, North Koreans aren’t

different from us.”

There have been many changes over the past seven years. We have built deep

trust and friendship to the extent that neither side now hesitates to say “Thank

you!” for help, though with subtle difference in accent. North Koreans do not

have “horns” on their heads.

The door was suddenly cracked open between the two Koreas after the joint

industrial park was built, giving a new glimmer of hope to the divided nation. I

was even thrilled by the thought that North Korea is no longer a distant land,

but a close neighbor, and that there are things in which we can help each other.

But situations tend to change. A stalemate occurred in the inter-Korean

exchange amid public criticism that the government was lavishing goods and

money on the North in disregard of the principle of reciprocity. Inter-Korean

relations have further deteriorated due to the North’s sinking of the Navy

corvette Cheonan in March 2010. Nonetheless, the cross-border industrial park

fared well thanks to the efforts of its founders and those who are maintaining

it.

There have recently been signs of a thaw in South-North relations since Seoul

made a conciliatory gesture to Pyongyang by permitting South Korean

businesspeople to resume construction within the industrial park.

Humanitarianism is the answer to all questions concerning inter-Korean

relations. Both sides should approach with a sincere heart ways to help each

other and adjust their pace as needed, instead of arguing over ideological

pretexts. Progress can be achieved only when both sides put economics and

peace ahead of politics.

Green Doctors, a civic group practicing humanitarianism, has been dispensing

free medical care at its hospital in Kaesong every day for the past seven years.

As many as 300,000 North Korean workers have been treated by some 30

South and North Korean doctors, who work together at the hospital. In their

hearts, there exist no such things as the wall of division.

Although they are working in different sections, South and North Korean

doctors put their heads together whenever emergency or critical patients arrive.

There is no room for ideologies or politics. At the South Korean Green

Doctors’ Kaesong Hospital, North Korean dentists treat South Korean workers

and North Korean nurses look after sick South Korean staffers. These scenes

are reminiscent of doctors’ offices at any hospital in South Korea.

A small peace is already being built at the Kaesong hospital. A solution to

inter-Korean relations may not lie anywhere else but right here.

[Maeil Business Newspaper, November 3, 2011]



Mobile Phone Craze in North Korea

Chung Young-chul Professor, Graduate School of Public Policy Sogang University

The number of mobile phones reportedly crossed the 800,000 mark in North

Korea in late September. This means that more than 140,000 mobile phones

were sold in three months, considering that about 660,000 mobile phones were

reported to be in use in late June. At such a speed, we can expect the total to

approach nearly 1 million by year’s end.

Each mobile phone costs about US$250, including the phone price and the

subscription fee, in North Korea. Given that the per-minute call rate is more

than $1 in the North, how can we understand this phenomenon? Moreover,

there is even speculation that mobile phones cost about $700-800 per unit in

some regions.

It may be assumed that the popularity of mobile phones is growing among North Koreans. But it is hard to understand the phenomenon, considering the average monthly salary of North Korean workers is about 3,000 won in their currency. According to the Bank of Korea, the North Korean economy shrank by 0.5 percent in 2010 on top of its negative growth in 2009. Either the BOK statistics or the media reports on the spread of mobile phones are wrong. Or, there may be circumstances that we don’t know. We can think of roughly three mobile phone buying patterns in North Korea. First, government agencies, enterprises, or factories may have bought mobile phones in bulk quantities. There is no way to find out how many mobile phones have been purchased in such a way, but this pattern surely accounts for a certain percentage of mobile phones sold in the North. Second, some rich people may have bought mobile phones in view of the widening income gap. Most individuals who use mobile phones may come under this category. Nonetheless, it still remains doubtful whether all 800,000 mobile phones have been bought by organizations or rich people. Thus, it may be assumed that ordinary people take up a large portion of mobile phone users. The question is how they can spend such a large amount of money. The BOK statistics say the Nort’s GNI per capita was about $1,074 last year. This amount was also an overestimate, experts speculated. In any case, some ordinary North Koreans are obviously spending the equivalent of their annual income to buy and use mobile phones. This seems incompatible with the reality in the North. Perhaps another buying pattern is at work. The mobile phone proliferation in the North could make clandestine contact with the South possible, so it is a positive phenomenon indicating that boundaries are crumbling. On the other hand, it is regrettable that there exists another aspect of North Korea that is incomprehensible to us.

[Hankook Ilbo, November 17, 2011] www.koreafocus.or.kr


Korea’s Choice for Global Partnership of Sharing

Lee Hong-koo Advisor to the JoongAng Ilbo Former Prime Minister

As the nation faces tough times, disgruntled people are asking bold and

emotive questions such as, “Should we care to help other countries when we

are struggling amid an acute hardship?” or “Is it imperative to be stuck to

upholding national prestige when our economy is in dire straits?” However, as

in the case of individual lives, a nation needs to be armed with wisdom and

vision to tackle not only immediate concerns but also future prospects in

charting a path and direction for development. The harder our situation is, the

bolder and tougher our national resolve must be in unhesitatingly pushing

forward with what we should do.

One unavoidable task is that we, having earned donor country status in the

international society, cannot neglect or delay extending assistance to countries

that lag behind us in economic development. We now live in a borderless

global community that has been created by globalization and rapid advances in

information technology. No country can cut these tethers and survive. Critical

issues or challenges facing a nation tend to spill across its borders and require

regional or global settlements, depending on their scale and intensity.

Questions of war and peace, struggles for democratization, sustainable

economic development and prevention of environmental disruption are

common tasks that the global community must address collectively for nations

to survive. We Koreans learned a precious lesson a century ago when self-

isolation cost the country’s sovereignty. That is one vital reason why we must

not sidestep or bolt from the international rank and file in coping with global

common issues. Moreover, we should be trying to be a leader in performing

global endeavors.

The pending question of disparity between the haves and have-nots has been

cited as the main cause of social unrest and conflict that is undermining

security and growth in not only advanced and emerging countries but also

developing countries, including the poorest. It is a sorry phenomenon that

becomes more noticeable when countries suffer from economic slowdown.

Just as wealth inequalities are prone to ignite social conflict in individual

countries, disparity between rich and poor nations poses an outright threat, and

a storm warning, to the global community’s peace and progress.

Thus the Fourth High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness, which will be held in

Busan in late November with the participation of more than 2,000 delegates

from some 170 countries, including top-ranking government leaders, is

especially meaningful. The significance of the convention stems not merely

from the scale of the attendance but its ultimate purpose of forging a global

partnership for effective use of development aid and poverty reduction. An

analogy can be drawn from nearly 200 signatory nations to the United Nations

Convention to Combat Desertification who attended a conference in

Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, in October to address desertification,

degradation of arable land and drought in the world.

There are two major reasons why we Koreans should have greater interest in

the international efforts to heighten the effectiveness of development aid and

to fight global desertification and land degradation. First, in light of the

prevailing movement for “sharing” at home, charitable or otherwise, we need

to expand the social norm of domestic sharing to less fortunate countries.

Second, foreign aid provision would elevate Korea’s standing and dignity in

the global community and boost our national interests and welfare as well.

During the half-century period following its liberation from Japanese rule in

1945, Korea received a total of $12.78 billion from the international

community, a colossal sum that was essential in promoting the nation’s

modernization and industrialization. In 1995, Korea’s status changed from a

recipient of the World Bank’s development assistance to an aid donor. Korea

began to offer foreign aid in the form of official development assistance

(ODA) with $5.7 million in 1991 and its amount has increased to $1 billion in

less than two decades.

Yet, the country’s foreign assistance still falls quite short of a target amount set

by the United Nations and the average aid given by member states of the

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), trailing

far behind advanced countries. Addressing a recent G20 summit in Cannes,

Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates praised Korea as a “standout”

for its remarkable increase in providing assistance to developing nations, after

graduating from an aid recipient to donor. But, we can’t be overly elated,

considering we have a long way to go.

Although we must be more actively engaged in providing international

development aid, not to be overlooked is the stark reality that foreign aid

programs have to be performed within our means. Our society is laden with

mountains of unfinished tasks and unsettled problems, including the

reunification of the country. Therefore, even if the scale of aid may be

relatively smaller when compared with advanced countries, our assistance

programs need to underscore substance, effectiveness and partnership based on

our experiences as an aid recipient.

For instance, we may give priority to those fields in which we have scored

relative success in terms of effectiveness and actual outcome, such as

reforestation, ecological protection and medical care for children in

impoverished environments. The world is certainly becoming a tougher place

to live in. However, we may compete well with the so-called major powers in

leading international drives to forge a “global partnership of sharing.” We have

already witnessed the pioneering mission of the late Father Lee Tae-suk,

whose selfless service in a small village in Sudan has moved numerous people.

[JoongAng Ilbo, November 14, 2001]



Aid Focused on Development Effectiveness for Recipients

Seo Kyung Professor, College of Medicine Yonsei University

Debate at the Fourth High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness, being held in

Busan, is primarily focused on improving the quality of aid against agreed

commitments and sharing global experiences in delivering the best results. The

discussion involves assessing the progress on the Paris Declaration of the

forum’s second meeting in 2005 and the Accra Agenda for Action adopted by

its third session in the Ghana capital in 2008.

Reflecting a prevailing consensus that calls for a transition in the international

aid policy paradigm from aid effectiveness to development effectiveness, the

forum is expected to formulate principles for achieving common goals,

including a greater sense of ownership on the part of aid recipient countries to

identify their development priorities, aid programs befitting policies of

individual recipient countries, enforcement of result-oriented programs that

embrace development partnership, and establishing circumstances that

guarantee transparency and responsibility.

In 2009, Korea joined the Organization for Economic Cooperation and

Development’s Development Assistance Committee (DAC), a forum of major

aid donor countries, spotlighting its transformation from a net aid recipient

country to a net aid donor. The amount of its foreign aid, which increased from

$264 million in 2001 to $1.16 billion last year, is expected to reach $3 billion

by 2015, accounting for 0.25 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP).

The portion shared for public health in Korea’s official development assistance

(ODA) also increased up to 23 percent as of 2009. Thus far Korea’s public

health and medical aid has focused on setting up medical infrastructure, such

as hospitals and dispensaries, supplying of medical instruments and training of

medical and public health manpower in developing countries. This approach

has been successful in countries like Peru. But in underdeveloped countries

such as those in Africa, which lack systemic health preservation in general,

stress has to be placed on securing medical personnel, supplying

pharmaceuticals and securing funds for hospital operations.

Even if foreign aid raises the standard of medical institutions, improvements in

national health can hardly be expected unless cultural, geographical and

economic problems hindering access to medical care are properly resolved.

Therefore, ODA for medical and health services need to be provided in ways

to simultaneously resolve those issues. The same is true with the training of

medical personnel. While people in sub-Saharan Africa suffer from 25 percent

of diseases in the world, they are cared by only 4 percent of the global total of

medical and health workers.

Therefore, it is urgent to produce new medical workers and enhance the competence of the existing manpower. Korea has been engaged in the latter by inviting medical personnel from developing countries to undergo internship courses at large university hospitals. But some training programs have been criticized for being overly attuned to conditions in Korea, not those in developing countries. Another concern is a growing trend of dispatching so-called voluntary medical service teams to developing countries by private organizations, mostly during the summer and winter vacation periods, without proper coordination and preparation. Few advanced countries send such short-term medical units abroad, except for natural disasters, because they involve a broad range of fundamental problems in terms of the quality and effectiveness of service and overall and continuous treatment. Occasionally, inadequate treatment and medication result in harms to people in the countries they visit. In some recent cases, ill-prepared Korean medical units were barred from providing service because they needed temporary local medical licenses or their pharmaceuticals failed to pass local customs inspection. These instances arose from their ignorance of, or default to learn, precise information about the countries to be visited. Even in the case of least developed countries in Africa, a foreign medical team needs to be properly versed in their legal requirements, besides the social and cultural climate. Foreign assistance must be tailored to suit the needs of recipients, rather than dictated by the donor’s inclination. Helping other people requires adequate strategy and technical know-how. Korea today faces the critical need to take a more mature stance as an aid giver and employ a forward-looking strategy to provide effective assistance to developing nations.

[JoongAng Ilbo, December 1, 2011] www.koreafocus.or.kr


- A Key Lies in Inter-Korean Economic Cooperation

- KORUS FTA Opens New Window of Opportunity

- Meaning of KORUS FTA

- Occupy Yourselves

A Key Lies in Inter-Korean Economic Cooperation

Yu Byoung-gyu Executive Director, Hyundai Research Institute Visiting Scholar at SAIS

The global economy will unlikely end prolonged sluggishness for the time being. The world’s leading economies, including the United States and European countries, are struggling with tepid demand amid high unemployment rates. Saddled with huge fiscal debt, they are not in any position to apply stimulus measures. Individual countries worldwide are preoccupied with finding new ways to survive. The global economic slump is expected to increasingly siphon the vitality of the Korean economy, which has limited domestic demand and is heavily dependent on international trade. This is why there are growing calls for efforts to drastically expand domestic demand. Fortunately, from a mid- to long-term perspective, Korea seems to be capable of increasing domestic demand and looking for new growth engines despite the global economic

weakness. It is because inter-Korean economic cooperation can provide a breakthrough. Above all, the cross-border cooperation will help expand domestic demand. The volume of domestic demand is determined by the size of population as well as income levels. A nation is required to secure a certain level of population in order to independently manage its own economy while promoting industrial development. However, South Korea’s population is declining due to its record-low birthrate. If inter-Korean economic cooperation is stimulated, a market with a population of nearly 100 million consumers can be secured. It will offer new hope for light industries and small- and medium-sized companies, which have deepened an economic bipolarization due to their falling competitiveness. In fact, some textile and footwear manufacturers, which have invested in China or Vietnam after securing competitiveness and profitability at the Kaesong (Gaeseong) Industrial Complex in North Korea, are showing signs of relocating their operations back home. At the Kaesong complex, a project that marries South Korean capital and technology with cheap labor from the North, South Korean companies produce clothes, utensils and watches, as well as electronic and machinery parts, employing more than 47,000 North Korean workers. Revival of small- and medium-sized businesses will help boost employment and ease the bipolarization of corporate performance, eventually promoting shared growth between large and small enterprises. The creation of new demand will also ease excess supply concerns of the nation’s key industrial players, including manufacturers of steel, cars and ships. Expanded inter-Korean economic cooperation would generate enormous development demand in Northeast Asia, including the two Koreas, paving the way for global economic recovery. Imagine the two Koreas jointly developing

industrial complexes, connecting gas pipelines and gradually push for joint logistics development projects, including a railway linking the Korean peninsula to Europe via China. Futurologists have long predicted that Northeast Asia will play a leading role in the global economic growth in the 21st century. The escalation of inter-Korean economic cooperation would create enormous development demand in Northeast Asia, increasing the possibility of these predictions coming true. Geopolitical risks on the Korean peninsula can also be reduced if the two Koreas increase economic dependence on each other. It can be evidenced by the relations between China and Taiwan. The two countries have steadily expanded bilateral economic cooperation in spite of their prolonged military confrontations. They eventually signed the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement, accomplishing the so-called “Chiwan” economic integration. The deepening of economic interconnections will ultimately help eliminate ideological confrontations by increasing the opportunity cost caused by military conflicts. Without a consistent vision and strategy for inter-Korean economic cooperation, dreams of more tangible fruits from cross-border cooperation can hardly come true. Any attempt to use inter-Korean economic cooperation as a short-term expedient to exhibit a regime’s accomplishments or display ideological identity should be halted. We need to have enthusiasm and willingness to maintain and expand inter-Korean economic cooperation under a strategy to promote the sustained prosperity of the Korean nation in the future as well as South Korea’s economic growth. Regardless of political party, faction and ideology, we should establish mid- to long-term visions and strategies for inter-Korean economic cooperation and faithfully carry them out. The principle of separation of politics from economics should be steadfastly maintained in order to secure the long-term sustainability of inter-Korean economic cooperation. Like the China-Taiwan

relations, the two Koreas should take advantage of practical strategies and measures to fully guarantee business cooperation regardless of mounting military tensions. In fact, the activity of private enterprises should be used to ease military tensions and safeguard communication channels. In order to ripen inter-Korean economic cooperation, it is necessary to foster working-level experts on North Korea rather than political theorists. We should be able to understand the sentiment and psychology of North Korean bureaucrats and residents. Then we can grasp the real intentions of North Koreans and realize compromise and mutual concession. We should also look for multilateral measures to enhance international cooperation to ensure the success of inter-Korean economic cooperation. If China, Russia, the United States, Europe and international organizations become involved in various inter-Korean economic cooperation and development projects, they can proceed smoothly regardless of conflicts between the two Koreas. Public education about unification should also be strengthened. Young students should be taught that mutual understanding and cooperation is beneficial to both Koreas. The best way to minimize unification costs and taxpayers’ burden is to reduce the sense of difference between the two Koreas and narrow their economic and social gaps through bilateral economic cooperation. The government’s New Year policy plans, as well as key policy pledges of presidential aspirants, should necessarily contain concrete measures to revive inter-Korean economic cooperation, a rare breakthrough that will guide South Korea out of the vicious cycle of global economic crises.

[Dong-a Ilbo, November 24, 2011] www.koreafocus.or.kr


KORUS FTA Opens New Window of Opportunity

Kwon Sun-hwal Editorial Writer The Dong-a Ilbo

“Unemployed people make up 25 percent of the entire working age

population. The per capita income falls short of US$100. Annual exports and

imports total $20 million and $200 million, respectively. The possibility of an

economic miracle in Korea is almost non-existent.” That was how American

foreign policy journal Foreign Affairs described the Korean economy in its

October 1960 issue while speaking bitterly of the Asian country’s reality and

future. At that time, Korea’s export volume was similar to that of Haiti and

stood merely at one-twentieth of the Philippines’. Forty percent of the Korean

people were living in absolute poverty. In those days, the World Bank even

issued a report saying that the future of Burma (Myanmar) was brighter than

that of Korea.

In 1962, when the Korean government began implementing its first five-year

economic development plan, the nation’s per capita income amounted to $87.

In the same year, the per capita income of the Philippines and Thailand stood

at $250 each, while North Korea recorded per capita income of $200 and India

and Sri Lanka posted $100, respectively, according to Sakong Il, chairman of

the Korea International Trade Association. Korea’s per capita income surged

239-fold over the next 48 years to reach $20,756 in 2010. Meanwhile, the

2010 per capita income of the other Asian nations was more than $15,000 less.

For Thailand it was $4,992; Sri Lanka, $2,428; the Philippines, $2,123; and

India, $1,370.

Korea’s export boom is mainly credited for the economic miracle. The

government’s decision in February 1964 to shift to export-oriented

industrialization from import substitution proved to be a seminal event. In

those days, most developing nations and economic scholars at home and

abroad touted import substitution as the best model for underdeveloped

countries. Korea’s policy shift thus was seen as extremely risky at that time.

But it bore fruit quickly; the nation’s annual exports topped $100 million for

the first time on November 30, 1964.

The nation’s trade volume topped $10 billion in 1974, $100 billion in 1988 and

$500 billion in 2005. This year, its annual trade volume is on track to pass $1

trillion for the first time, making it only the ninth country to achieve the

landmark feat. President Park Chung-hee’s “trade first” policy has never been

challenged despite several administrative changes. It has been perpetuated by

all of his successors: Chun Doo-hwan, Roh Tae-woo, Kim Young-sam, Kim

Dae-jung, Roh Moo-hyun and Lee Myung-bak.

Some young people seem to take the abundance they enjoy for granted. But

the situation in Korea might have been different, if entrepreneurs, factory

workers and civil servants of their parents’ and grandparents’ generation had

not turned their attention to overseas markets and worked tirelessly. Without

the older generations’ perseverance, I doubt whether Korea’s economic and

living standards today would be better than those of other developing

countries. Anger, resentment, hatred, nationalist sentiment and resistance to

free trade deals, which are displayed by some members of our society these

days, have risen above dangerous levels.

The long-stalled Korea-U.S. free trade agreement has been ratified by the

legislatures of both countries, paving the ground for a new turnaround for

Korea’s trade sector. Basically, it is desirable for both the ruling and opposition

parties to participate in the floor vote on the free trade deal with the United

States. Amid the fading expectations for a bipartisan agreement, however, the

swift completion of parliamentary ratification procedures was belated but

inevitable. It is the first time in a long time that the Grand National Party has

fulfilled its responsibility as a ruling party for the sake of national interest. The

anti-FTA forces’ claim of being “railroaded” by the ruling party is simply

another case of making up excuses.

It was impressive that lawmakers of the conservative minority Liberty

Forward Party (LFP) chose to participate in the floor vote on the KORUS FTA

amid the tear gas released by an opposition representative. It is worthwhile to

remember the five LFP lawmakers who voted for the trade bill with the future

of the nation in mind – Chough Soon-hyung, Lee Hoi-chang, Rhee In-je, Kim

Yong-gu and Lee Young-ae. Rep. Kang Bong-kyun acted as a lone voice inside

the main opposition Democratic Party in approving the free trade deal.

“Korea’s remarkable export expansion and economic growth may not have

been possible, if India, Argentina, Mexico and the Philippines had pursued a

Korean-style, outward-looking development path, instead of an import

substitution policy,” said Kim Soo-yong, former economics professor at

Sogang University, calling attention to the concept of first-mover advantage.

The KORUS FTA, combined with free trade deals with the European Union,

India and other countries, will widen Korea’s opportunities to achieve further

economic growth. It is our duty to maximize the first-mover effect.

There is no reason the task cannot be achieved; Korea already has the best

chance of becoming the first newly industrialized economy to join the ranks of

advanced countries. The new challenge now is how to solidify its position as a

“trade superpower.”

[November 23, 2011]



Meaning of KORUS FTA

Song Won-gun Director, Research Planning & Coordination Division Korea Economic Research Institute

The long-pending bill to ratify the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement, or

KORUS FTA, was finally passed by the National Assembly on November 22,

following its approval by the U.S. Congress. The KORUS FTA is about to take

effect more than five years after the two countries began free trade

negotiations. The ratification of KORUS FTA is historically meaningful in

further speeding up Korea’s economic advancement, and is especially timely

considering the threat of a global economic upheaval emanating from the

eurozone fiscal crisis.

KORUS FTA has thus far generated considerable controversy and trouble. The

process leading to its ratification has been turbulent in both countries.

Following the inauguration of the Barack Obama administration, Washington

changed the direction of its foreign trade policy, putting the trade pact in

danger of being nullified. Anti-KORUS FTA forces at home have persistently

spread groundless rumors on the agreement since the beginning of negotiations

in 2006.

What are the benefits expected from KORUS FTA? Some people downplay

the expected benefits, citing the persistent U.S. economic slump. But the

United States is still the world’s largest market and KORUS FTA will provide

us with more opportunities to make inroads. In this sense, significant

economic effects can be expected. Coupled with the Korea-EU FTA, the

KORUS FTA will bring about economic integration with two of the world’s

most advanced economies.

In addition to boosting trade and economic growth, the FTAs signed with the

advanced economies will increase foreign investment and enhance our service

industries. Korea, which has a well-educated and experienced labor force, was

already an attractive investment destination for enterprises in developed

countries before the FTAs. The trade pacts will further improve the investment

environment for them. In particular, investments in the high value-added

knowledge-based service sector will increase, helping elevate Korea’s

comparatively backward service sector. In the process, the controversial

Investor-State Dispute Settlement clause, which KORUS FTA foes call a toxic

provision, will help promote foreign investment by better protecting the

interests of investors.

Korea is the sole East Asian country that has FTAs with the United States and

EU. It will become an FTA hub in East Asia, a future engine of global

economic growth, and a pivotal player in global trade. On the other side of the

Pacific, the KORUS FTA will help ease the moribund U.S. economy, which is

a primary cause of the ongoing global economic crisis.

In the wake of the 2008 global financial crisis, the United States has yet to

fully recover private consumption, its main economic engine. In contrast, U.S.

corporations have rebounded, raising the possibility of an export-led economic

recovery. KORUS FTA will help broaden American enterprises’ export

opportunities, thus contributing to boosting U.S. production and investment

and speeding up its recovery. That would be welcome news for emerging

economies’ exports that are heavily dependent on the American market. It will

also be helpful in easing instability in international financial markets that has

been caused by the eurozone debt crisis.

The Korean economy, which is heavily dependent on international trade and

sensitive to emerging market demand, will be the biggest beneficiary of U.S.

economic revitalization and subsequent global economic recovery. In addition,

U.S. economic recovery and subsequent stabilization of international financial

markets will also contribute to Korea’s sustained economic growth. To sum up,

KORUS FTA is quite meaningful, as it will contribute to boosting global

economic recovery and stabilizing global financial markets.

[Maeil Business Newspaper, November 25, 2011]



Occupy Yourselves

Park Jong-myun President The Bell

In the Diamond Sutra, one of the most historically important texts in Buddhism, Sakyamuni Buddha teaches sunyata (emptiness), the core philosophical concept of Mahayana Buddhism, in a question and answer session with his disciple Subhuti. Throughout, the Buddha repeatedly advises his disciple not to think that his mission is to redeem living beings by liberating them from suffering. “Subhuti, what do you think? Let no one say the Tathagata cherishes the idea: I must liberate all living beings. Allow no such thought, Subhuti. Wherefore? Because in reality there are no living beings to be liberated by the Tathagata.” This repeatedly emphasized passage in the Diamond Sutra does not necessarily represent the Buddha’s humbleness. In fact, the Buddha is teaching that it is you, not anyone else, who can save yourself. He teaches us to have an

unwavering faith, practice strictly for ourselves, attain awakening and save ourselves. Attaining the highest state of spiritual awakening and cultivating positive thoughts are the primary teachings of the Diamond Sutra. An international news agency recently selected the word “occupy,” a rallying cry of the anti-Wall Street movement, as the most commonly used English word on the Internet and in print this year. In addition, deficit, anger and rage, the Great Depression and 99 were very frequently mentioned in news media. From the global key words of this year we can figure out the current circumstances of the global economy and the widespread concerns of people worldwide. Korea is no exception. College students have taken collective action to protest high tuition, while self-employed individuals staged rallies demanding cuts in commissions they pay to credit card companies. Discontent and complaints are also growing over expensive bank commissions and excessive sales and vendor commissions charged by department stores. Even worse, young people are angry at the older generation; High school graduates are angry at college graduates; Non-regular workers are angry at regular workers; and non-Gangnam residents are angry at Gangnam residents. The entire nation seems to be a crucible of anger. The “angry 99 percent” are frustrated by little hope of success, no matter how hard they work. They are worried about their future and complain about the unfair game rules widespread throughout economy and society. Most of the members of our society are restless, angry and despaired. Paradoxically, the phenomenon seems to be related to the rapid development of social networking services (SNS), such as Facebook and Twitter. SNS users are actively sharing their feelings of despair and resentment in cyberspace. This is the reality that cannot be denied. The frustration and sense of hopelessness about the future, especially

widespread among people in their 20s and 30s, is fully understandable. It also should be duly acknowledged that considerable responsibility lies with society, state and the older generation. But do not expect society, state and the older generation to find a solution to the young generation’s frustration, restlessness and anger. That is a misunderstanding. Do you happen to expect much from progressive figures, like Ahn Cheol-soo? That is delusion and vanity. Some European economies have failed after spending enormous amounts of taxpayer money on free education and free school meals, job creation and comfortable retirement. What does their failure mean? As the Buddha repeatedly emphasized to his disciple Subhuti, we should save ourselves. We should attain awakening by ourselves, cultivate positive thoughts and exert efforts. We should reformulate the negative energy of resentment to encourage ourselves to do something productive instead of consuming ourselves destructively. The political community is not the target you should occupy in anger and frustration. Large conglomerates are not the target to be occupied. The financial districts in Yeouido and Myeong-dong are not the target to be occupied. It is you that should be occupied. Occupy yourselves. I wish the following clauses in Sutta Nipata, the oldest of all Buddhist scriptures, would be a small comfort to all you angry people. I wish they would serve as guidelines for your life. “The Muni that wanders solitarily, the zealous, that is not shaken by blame and praise. Like a lion not trembling at noises, like the wind not caught in a net, like a lotus not stained by water, let one wander alone like a rhinoceros.”

[Money Today, November 14, 2011] www.koreafocus.or.kr


- The ‘Silent Generation’ in Korea

- Why They Are Threatened by Twitter

- How to Communicate with the 2040 Generation

- ‘Anger Index’ of Young People in Korea and Japan

- Korean Technology beyond Motherboards and Displays

The ‘Silent Generation’ in Korea

Hong Young-lim Opinion Survey Team Head The Chosun Ilbo

In America, those aged 65 and over are called the “Silent Generation.” They

were born during the Great Depression, endured hardships during World War

II and have conformed to given circumstances rather than trying to make their

voices heard. In Korea, those in their 50s and 60s may be seen as their

counterparts because they have worked silently and obediently for the

country’s economic development since the Korean War (1950-53).

These days, the voice of this generation is growing even dimmer. The media

attention is focused on those in their 20s to 40s and Twitter, still an unfamiliar

communication tool for older generations, is being regarded as the “genuine

winner” in the October 26 by-election for Seoul mayor.

A recent survey found that among people aged 50 and over, 11 percent of them

in the United States used Twitter but a mere 0.5 percent did in digitally

advanced Korea. The reason the older Korean generations don’t tweet is not

simply because of their unfamiliarity with digital technology. They have an

aversion to the pervasive peer-to-peer communication and to collective

extreme views among the young generation.

According to Socialmetrics, a social network analysis provider, sexually

harassing tweets taunting mayoral candidate Na Kyung-won for attending an

event of the Japan Self-Defense Forces were posted as many as 14,163 times

during the one-month run-up to the by-election. This means ridiculing

comments were made once every three minutes about her.

If Twitter is transformed into a “tool for communication disruption” to

collectively make fun of a specific person, it would not fit the older

generations, who value decency. The “theory of Twitter power,” which argues

that Twitter raised the voter turnout among the youth to exert a decisive

influence on election results, also annoys the older generations, who have

faithfully cast their ballots in elections.

According to survey results released by the Central Election Management

Committee (CEME) in October, the voter turnout for the April 27

parliamentary by-election in the Bundang-B district of Gyeonggi Province, in

which the opposition Democratic Party snatched victory allegedly owing to

Twitter’s sweeping impact on voter participation, was 35.9 percent among

those in their 30s and younger, 50.3 percent among those in their 40s and 65.1

percent among those in their 50s and older.

However, the voter turnout in the 2008 general elections, before the

widespread emergence of Twitter, did not differ substantially. It was 32.2

percent among those in their 30s and younger, 47.9 percent among those in

their 40s and 63.1 percent among those in their 50s and older,

“We didn’t investigate the turnout by age in the Seoul mayoral by-election.

But we suppose that the result would be similar to that in the Bundang-B

district by-election, considering regional characteristics,” a CEMC official

said. If so, there is the possibility that the influence of Twitter was overly

exaggerated. It is assumed that, even without Twitter, the winner in the Seoul

mayoral by-election would have been determined by opposition supporters, of

whom 43 percent and 30 percent were in their 50s and 60s, respectively, along

with an overwhelming majority of those in their 20s to 40s.

Communication scholars also observe that “Twitter only represents the opinion

of young voters and is not a factor in election results.” Yet, if politicians

devote themselves excessively to “Twitter politics” by trying to organize

“Twitter-based political parties” or fostering “Twitter warriors,” older

generations would feel even more left out. When these “silent voters” are

provoked and united in coming elections, they could demonstrate enormous

destructive power beyond imagination.

[November 22, 2011]



Why They Are Threatened by Twitter

Chang Duk-jin Professor of Sociology Director, Institute for Social Development and Policy Research Seoul National University

The crackdown on social networking services (SNS) has continued for over a

month. The prime target is Twitter. Government agencies with mandates

remotely relevant, including the Korea Communications Standards

Commission, the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office, the Central Election

Management Commission and various state-funded research institutes, have

joined in the attacks with support from the ruling party, all the terrestrial

broadcasting networks and conservative newspapers. The joint firing at SNS

became fiercer with the launch of by-election campaigns and reached its peak

when Park Won-soon became the new mayor of Seoul.

Lately, I’ve been getting three to four calls a day seeking my views as a

researcher of the relationship between Twitter, elections and democracy.

Interestingly, the requests are almost always for comments or presentations on

the side effects of rumors circulated on Twitter and of Twitter itself or the evils

of what is referred to as “socialtainment.”

One thing is certain: Twitter is definitely a threat to the Presidential Office and

the ruling Grand National Party, and they cannot be confident about next

year’s election results with Twitter intact. However, trying to form a negative

public opinion of Twitter or to regulate it in some way will not be successful.

The persecutors of Twitter would do better to stop their Twitter bashing and

think deep and hard about a number of things that can help address their

problems in a meaningful way.

First, they need to look both online and offline in order to get a full view of the

present situation. Before condemning Twitter as the breeding grounds of

leftists, one must first realize how the traditional media has been so closely

tied to the ruling party and served as a bastion of the conservatives. As the

established media veers further right, the new media tends to move away in the

opposite direction. This is the principle of checks and balances coming into

play.

Secondly, they should stop attacking Twitter as a source of hoaxes and rumors,

which is itself a groundless claim. All media, including social media,

disseminate incorrect information at times. The question is whether it is

intentional and whether and how soon it is corrected. On all three of these

accounts Twitter is far superior to the conventional media, because of the

democratization of editing rights and collective intelligence, which are

hallmarks of Twitter.

In conventional media a single individual monopolizes the right to edit

content, and they are therefore more vulnerable to deliberate distortion of facts

and denial of requests for correction. Even when such requests are accepted, it

often takes a while before the correction is actually made. In media like

Twitter, on the other hand, the right to edit contents is distributed among four

million users.

Therefore, a single person cannot distort information even if he/she tries to,

and when faulty information gets out, it is quickly amended by someone

among the four million users who actually knows the topic very well. Often

the correction can be done in a relatively short amount of time. This is a fact

that has been confirmed through numerous data analyses. That Twitter is a hub

of unfounded rumors is, indeed, a rumor.

Thirdly, regulation is fundamentally impossible. Any attempt to regulate

Twitter will soon lead to a technology that can bypass that regulation.

Restrictions can end up disproportionately disadvantaging similar services

offered by local providers.

Take for example China, which has the strongest regulations on Twitter. One

of my students analyzed the tweets in Chinese by distinguishing between

tweets in simplified and traditional Chinese characters. Simplified Chinese

characters are generally used in the mainland and the number of tweets in

simplified characters can be used to estimate the Twitter user population in

China. Surprisingly, 95 percent of Chinese tweets are in the simplified form,

which shows that even the strong restrictions of the Chinese government could

not stop people from engaging in Twitter.

Fourthly, the main appeal of Twitter is in communication, empathy and

solidarity. Whereas in traditional media one would unilaterally send out a

message and consider it done, Twitter requires active communication. When

that communication is truthful, the four million members of the Twitter

network will begin to empathize. The ultimate phase in empathy is solidarity.

Since the emergence of Twitter we have seen solidarity forming and shaping in

ways that are both touching and unprecedented.

The Hope Bus project, the reopening of the small restaurant Duriban in

Hongdae area after its forceful evacuation and the settlement between Cafe

Mari in Myeong-dong and a property developer are all examples of this new

type of solidarity. They all started out as a small voice, which grew through

communication and earned the empathy of the audience and finally led to

powerful solidarity.

Those who feel they are threatened by Twitter should first look back upon

themselves to see whether they are unilaterally pushing out messages or are

engaged in meaningful communication, and whether the message being

communicated is generating empathy among the participants in the

conversation. They should also look back on whether they are in solidarity

with the 99 percent or with the 1 percent.

[Kyunghyang Daily News, November 18, 2011]



How to Communicate with the 2040 Generation

Hwang Ho-taek Senior Editorial Writer The Dong-a Ilbo

Ahn Cheol-soo has given his “Youth Concert” in 27 areas across the country,

bringing together 44,000 spectators and mobilizing 2,700 volunteer workers. It

is known that Ahn borrowed the format of his “concert” from a talk-lecture

that Silicon Valley venture capitalist John Doerr gave by conversing with a

famous American TV broadcaster on a stage.

Since a lecture has a limited audience like a theater production, the lecture

series itself was probably not powerful enough to create the Ahn Cheol-soo

phenomenon. However, as it was featured in a special program on MBC TV,

which went viral through the Internet and SNS, the Youth Concert spread

widely among young people in their 20s and 30s. Just like Hyun Bin became a

star after the end of the drama, “Secret Garden,” Ahn Cheol-soo emerged as a

formidable political force as his Youth Concert exquisitely coincided with the

by-election for Seoul mayor.

Professor Youn Sug-min at the Department of Communication, Seoul National

University, said that he has attended the Youth Concert to confirm the Ahn

Cheol-soo phenomenon for himself. “The attempt at a new format had a great

effect in Korea, but I was disappointed at the content and level of the talk-

lecture,” said Professor Youn. “The spread of influence seemed more effective

on people who did not actually attend it.” In contrast, Professor Kim Ho-ki of

sociology at Yonsei University said, “Mr. Ahn successfully approached young

people agonizing over unemployment and a sense of social isolation to

sympathize and communicate with them.”

At the Kyobo Bookstore in Gwanghwamun, central Seoul, a political

commentary book written by Kim Eo-jun, the master moderator of an Internet

radio talk show “I Am a Cheater” (Naneun ggomsuda) and a self-styled “party

boss,” is piled up high along with the official biography of Steve Jobs, the late

CEO of Apple. I skimmed through the book, which had 33 printings in the first

month of its release, and closed it after reading 50 pages or so.

I also downloaded several episodes of Kim’s podcast show into my

smartphone and listened to them on my morning walk. From the first to the

fifth episode, the show lasted about one hour, but it gradually became longer

and the show featuring Hong Joon-pyo, chairman of the ruling Grand National

Party, lasted as long as three hours and 20 minutes.

According to a survey, three out of every 10 Seoul citizens have listened to the

show but I wonder how many people would spend so much time listening to

all 28 episodes, most of them as long as a full-length movie. “I Am a Cheater”

[the “cheater” suggests President Lee Myung-bak] exaggerates, twists, and

even distorts facts as well as takes side with a specific party. If this is a

comedy satirizing politics, it should be ridiculous to look for truth in it.

The young generation typically tends to respond quickly to the freshness of a

means or medium of communication rather than the quality of content. These

days, young people seem to strongly resist anyone attempting to infuse them

with a certain value or educate them because they consider themselves highly

knowledgeable thanks to new communication tools like the Internet, e-mail,

messenger, SNS and blog.

Political satire making fun of the powerful seems pungent, righteous and fun.

The Ddanzi Ilbo, the predecessor of “I Am a Cheater,” failed to gain popularity

and was temporarily closed under the Roh Moo-hyun administration. In this

regard, the right-wing commentators’ “Premium Chatter” (Myeongpum Suda)

was launched amid disadvantageous conditions. A mass communication

professor underestimated Internet talk shows, saying, “With a sound culture of

discussion yet to take root in our society, trivial chattering like random chit

chats of soju drinkers is drawing response. They will soon reach their

bottoms.”

Professor Kim Nan-do of Seoul National University, who dubbed himself a

“state exam flunky,” published an essay collection titled “It Hurts Because It’s

Youth,” which has sold as many as 1.3 million copies to shock the slow

domestic book market. Although it doesn’t seem to be a significant book in the

eyes of older generations, the book should have lots of content that young

people can sympathize with.

As a newspaper employee, I find one specific statement in this bestselling

book to keep weighing on my mind. It reads, “Young fellows these days seem

to think they don’t need to read newspapers because they can get news and

information from the Internet and TV.”

Since the Internet search tends to be self-initiated, young people these days

compile newspapers for themselves in their own ways. Professor Nicholas

Negroponte, co-founder of the MIT Media Lab, named this news reading

behavior as “Daily Me.” Professor Kim Nan-do recommends “reading at least

two newspapers carrying different views,” but his advice appears to fall flat on

young people preferring “Daily Me” only and savoring the biased views of “I

Am a Cheater.”

In America, broadcasting networks such as Fox News and radio talk shows of

right-leaning commentators like Rush Limbaugh are leading the discussion,

but in Korea the right and left are in switched positions. Korea’s right wing is

lagging behind in the propaganda war of translating conservative values into

joyful plays and festivals and spreading them among the youth. The right-wing

camp has no arena for communication as funny and original as “I Am a

Cheater,” “Youth Concert” or “Knee-slap Shaman” (Mureuppak Dosa). In the

words of Antonio Gramsci, they handed over the cultural hegemony to leftists.

Professor Kim Ho-ki believes that the 2040 generation is demanding the

repoliticization of the existing political community and restructuring of party

politics. Copycat “concerts” cannot ensure the survival of the existing political

parties. To communicate with the 2040 generation, they must first learn how to

approach and mingle with young people to have fun together. What message to

deliver is the next question.

[November 14, 2011]



‘Anger Index’ of Young People in Korea and Japan

Song Hee-young Chief Editorial Writer The Chosun Ilbo

On October 27, the day after pan-opposition candidate Park Won-soon was

elected the mayor of Seoul in a by-election, I briefly met a group of students of

Waseda University from Japan. I began with saying, “In Korea, young people

stood up and achieved a change of power in the capital city.” They looked at

each other, as if taken off guard and hesitant to respond to an unexpected

statement. So I asked them, “Why don’t you have ‘Occupy Wall Street’

demonstrations in Japan? “ Then, wearing a puzzled expression, they said,

“How can such a thing happen in Japan···”

While the explosion of pent-up frustration among the young generation in their

20s to 40s is making headlines in Korea, the situation in Japan is just the

opposite. Experts have had arguments about “young people who are not

angry” amid laments over “the young generation that never gets angry.” Japan

is not immune to public distrust in politics and a wide gap between the rich

and the poor. Japanese people are fed up with changing prime ministers once

every year while relative poverty – less than 1.12 million yen a year, which is

less than 50 percent of the median income level – climbed to a record high 16

percent in 2010, topping Korea’s 14.9 percent.

According to a survey by the Japanese Prime Minister’s Office, 63.1 percent of

Japanese in their 20s said that “they have worries and anxieties,” a more than

40 percent increase since 20 years ago. With such a broad base for the

explosion of anger, the “Occupy” rallies in Japan attracted some 100

participants at the most. In contrast, several thousand protesters gathered for

the anti-hallyu rally held in front of the Fuji Television headquarters to call for

an end to broadcasting Korean dramas. Also, more than 50,000 people,

including many young mothers, took to the streets of Tokyo to demand the

shutdown of nuclear power plants.

A college professor who has observed Japanese youth explained, “It is because

young Japanese people have no complaints about the present state of their

lives, though they may feel uneasy about their uncertain future.” With more

than 80 percent of young people living with their parents, they do not have to

put up tents in parks like the jobless in the United States. The professor added,

“They can get a meal for only three 100-yen coins. When they possess cell

phones, personal computers and everything they need, what else do they

want?” This means material affluence is effectively suppressing anger.

An economist cited the different rates of youth unemployment. Youth

unemployment in the United States and Europe hovers between 20 and 40

percent, but the rate is blow 10 percent in Japan. Given that one of every three

paid workers are non-regular workers, young Japanese are not in so dire

situations as their counterparts in Britain or the United States, who set shops

on fire or stormed bank branches.

Then, are young Koreans angry because they have been driven out of their

homes to live on their own and skip meals? Actually, there is no big difference

between Korea and Japan in terms of youth unemployment as well. In October,

Korea’s official youth unemployment rate was 6.9 percent, with the actual

unemployment rate comprising those who have given up job search reaching

11.3 percent. If youth unemployment cannot explain the different attitudes of

young people in Korea and Japan, what is the real reason behind the gap

between their rage indices?

One may say it is due to the different national characters. Japanese people

seldom reveal their inner thoughts, whereas Koreans tend to complain about

any trivial matter. Unlike Korea, Japan has had no successful student or

civilian revolution. Moreover, Japanese became fed up with radical struggles

waged by some youth groups during the 1960s and 70s.

Nevertheless, the above analyses are not sufficient to fully explain the

difference between the anger indices of Korean and Japanese youth. The views

of Japanese experts highlight two important factors. First, Japanese youth have

been taught to distinguish winners and losers since their childhood while their

society has tacitly established performance-oriented functionalism in which

individuals should be duly rewarded based on their efforts and abilities. It is a

far cry from the popular belief in Korea that everyone is entitled to equal

treatment under the influence of a standardized education system.

Second, Japan’s young elite who possess leadership qualities are sucked up by

large companies. Most of the young talents capable of organizing solidarity

with the disaffected are leading comfortable lives as employees of elite

companies. In contrast, many talented youths were driven out to become

political activists in Korea during the 1980s. They secured their places as

social outsiders and formed civic groups, raising issues and playing pivotal

roles in uniting unstable young people via the Internet or Twitter.

Yet, a senior Japanese journalist did not conceal his envy. “In Korea, young

people have judged politicians by a peaceful means called ‘election,’” he said.

He seemed to mean that young Koreans are far better than their Japanese peers

who have been tamed to be obedient and intoxicated with self-satisfaction. He

went on to introduce a Japanese sociologist’s view that “human beings become

discontented with their present conditions when they believe they can be

happier in the future than now.”

I wonder whether Korean youths are giving vent to their frustration because

they cannot control their overflowing desire to create a future that will be

happier than now.

[November 19, 2011]



Korean Technology beyond Motherboards and Displays

Emanuel Pastreich Professor of East Asian Cultural Studies Humanitas College, Kyung Hee University

In this highly technology-oriented era, when a number of new products are

developed every day, the term “technology” demands more attention. The

challenges we face require us to move beyond the rather limited significance

assigned to the word.

“Technology” commonly refers to applied techniques for design and the

fabrication of parts for the electronics industry, and to a lesser degree to

mechanical engineering, energy generation and biotechnology. But rapid

changes in society such as the environmental crisis and the aging population

are putting pressure on us to expand the definition of technology to allow for

new solutions.

Albert Einstein said that “we can’t solve problems by using the same kind of

thinking we used when we created them.” Likewise, technology also must be

taken up to another level. Let us consider the epistemological root of the term

“technology.” It derives from the Greek term “techne” denoting “skill” or

“craft.” So its original meaning was far broader than the current interpretation.

As Korea plays a more central role globally, we must reconsider exactly what

is meant by technology in the Korean context. More specifically, we need to

think about Korea’s remarkable technological tradition over the last thousand

years and what assets lie there, perhaps sleeping and waiting for application.

Particularly, Korea’s proud tradition of taekwondo has potential as a

technology. Part of this native martial art’s physical therapy can be combined

with medical treatments and diet supplements to help enhance health or speed

up recovery. The notable capacity of taekwondo to bring spiritual peace and

balance to the metabolism has not been seriously explored as a technology that

can be incorporated with other medicines for enhanced impact, especially in an

aging society.

And then there is Korea’s greatest hidden treasure, the traditional medicine, or

hanui in Korean. Only very recently has the field been recognized as a

potential “gold mine” for medical technologies. Korea has its own

sophisticated medical tradition, which includes a complex acupuncture therapy

that shares elements with China and Japan but has followed its own trajectory.

Much of Korea’s tradition of homeopathic and herbal remedies for long-term

ailments has yet to be documented in the West. As the process of scientific

analysis continues, there will be certainly many more discoveries.

And then there are the noteworthy technologies of daily life that are to be

found in traditional Korean homes and farms. During the Joseon period (1392-

1910), Korea developed remarkable systems of irrigation, organic farming and

low water usage, which have all but been forgotten. Cooking methods were

also carefully devised to minimize waste and assure maximum nutrition.

Korean traditional homes, with their highly efficient ondol heating systems,

are models of sustainable development. Moreover, the structure of traditional

Korean villages, which are eco-friendly in every sense of the word, contains a

striking beauty and efficiency that cries out to be utilized in modern

construction.

And Korea possesses a plethora of traditional designs and motifs from fabrics,

woodworks, ceramics and furniture deserving to be integrated into

contemporary life. We have yet to see smartphones designed with traditional

Korean patterns or offices furnished with traditional Korean-style cabinets and

tables. When Korea starts making these attempts, it will become a worldwide

trend. The country will see its technologies of lacquer ware and carpentry

regain their importance.

An astounding amount of technologies have been passed over in an unbounded

quest for modernization. Ironically, as Korea moves forward, it must also look

backwards to identify the hidden technologies that underlay its cultural

strength. By expanding the definition of “technology” Korea can fully utilize

its remarkable tradition and bring a new depth to the range of services that it

offers to the world.

[Munhwa Ilbo, November 30, 2011]



- Jeju Island Becomes Humanity’s Treasure

- Tripitaka Koreana Festival Celebrates Cultural Creativity

- Japan Returns Looted Documents after 100 Years

- The Bibimbap Fever in Japan

- Image of Koreans across a Century

Jeju Island Becomes Humanity’s Treasure

Yang Byoung-e Professor Emeritus of Environmental Planning Graduate School of Environmental Studies Seoul National University

The New 7 Wonders Foundation, a Swiss-based nonprofit organization,

announced that Jeju Island has been chosen as one of the “New 7 Wonders of

Nature” in a global poll. This deserves congratulations from the entire nation.

New 7 Wonders Founder and President Bernard Weber launched this project in

a bid to select modern seven wonders because only the Pyramids have

survived while all the other wonders of the ancient world have been lost. The

first project targeted cultural and man-made sites and as many as 100 million

people around the world cast votes. The results were announced on July 7,

2007.

“New 7 Wonders of Nature” were chosen from among natural and non-

artificial sites around the world. It is truly significant that Jeju Island has been

named one of the world’s greatest natural wonders. First, it means that people

around the world have recognized Jeju as one of the planet’s most mysterious

and marvelous assets of nature. Now, Jeju is a precious treasure not only of the

Korean people but all of humankind.

Second, the global community has acknowledged that natural scenery is Jeju

Island’s most valuable asset. Jeju is known for diverse attractions including

scenic sites, cultural legacies and modern tourism facilities. But the world

community regards natural beauty as the island’s most prized asset that should

be carefully preserved.

Third, Jeju Island’s natural beauty has become a top-level international brand

with its selection as one of the “New 7 Wonders of Nature.” The island had

previously garnered three UNESCO landmark designations: World Geoparks

by the Global Network of National Geoparks in 2010; Natural Heritage Site in

2007; and Biosphere Reserve in 2002. Jeju is the world’s only winner of the

“quadruple crown” awarded for natural environment.

Fourth, the Korean government now bears even heavier responsibility to

protect and manage the natural environment of Jeju Island, which has now

become a treasure of all human beings throughout the world.

As soon as Jeju Island was chosen for “New 7 Wonders of Nature,” some

domestic media outlets hurriedly spotlighted its possible impact on tourism

revenues. But careful strategies and policy measures are needed to reap desired

benefits in tourism. It is hoped that the island’s administrative authorities as

well as the central government would think cool-headedly how to develop and

nurture this treasure of mankind with long-term perspectives.

Above all else, plans to protect and preserve the island’s natural environment

in a proactive fashion need to be drafted. Any damage to the island’s nature

would be a setback to the tourism industry, not to mention invite criticism

from the global community. A blind pursuit of tourism income would lead to

reckless development projects undermining the intrinsic value of the island’s

nature.

Next, tourism facilities need to be expanded to cope with the increasing

number of visitors as long as they do not destroy the island’s natural

environment. Expansion of the airport and lodging facilities should be among

the most urgent tasks. It is suggested that an evaluation system be introduced

to assess the potential impact on natural environment in the process of

planning the construction of tourism facilities.

Lastly, a brand strategy is needed to effectively promote the image Jeju’s

natural environment and invigorate tourism on the island. Tourism workers as

well as local residents should change their mindsets and attitudes to become

more hospitable toward visitors. On the occasion of this truly auspicious event,

it is earnestly hoped that the entire nation will pool their wisdom to harmonize

natural conservation and tourism so that the wondrous nature of Jeju Island is

perfectly preserved and handed down to future generations.

[Munhwa Ilbo, November 14, 2011]



Tripitaka Koreana Festival Celebrates Cultural Creativity

Chun Taeck-soo Secretary-General Korean National Commission for UNESCO

The Tripitaka Koreana, inscribed on the UNESCO Memory of the World

Register, celebrates its 1,000th anniversary this year. To commemorate the

event, South Gyeongsang Province, Hapcheon County and Haein Temple have

jointly hosted the “2011 Millennial Anniversary of the Tripitaka Koreana,” a

45-day festival which opened on September 23, in Gaya-myeon near the

historic temple.

The festival has observed the cultural and historical value of the Tripitaka

Koreana from modern perspectives and highlighted the significance of the

woodblock edition of the Buddhist canon in the world. The Tripitaka Koreana,

or Goryeo Daejanggyeong, was compiled twice during the Goryeo Dynasty,

first in 1101-1187 and then in 1236-1251, amid invasions by the Khitan and

Mongols, respectively, in mammoth national projects initiated to defend the

country with the benevolence of the Buddha.

The festival site consists of the Tripitaka Millennium Hall, the main venue of

the exhibition, as well as the World Exchange Hall, the World Citizen Hall, the

Spiritual Culture Hall, and the Knowledge and Civilization Hall, where the

Tripitaka Koreana was described in detail with a touch of modern

reinterpretation to give visitors a better understanding of the medieval

woodblocks beyond their religious significance.

A thematic road along the scenic Hongnyudong Valley, dubbed the “Haeinsa

Sorigil (Sound Path),” offers diverse cultural experiences while guiding

visitors to the festival venue. The road leading into the mountain monastery

has also turned into a virtual outdoor art gallery exhibiting artworks created by

leading artists from various countries under the Haein Art Project to deliver

their messages based on Buddhist themes. As such, the festival appears to

successfully present the views and insights of many experts in diverse fields. It

is running smoothly, drawing 1.1 million visitors within a month.

Despite its obviously successful operation, what is truly important for the

Tripitaka festival is that it should not end up being a mere addition to the 800-

odd regional festivals that are held across the nation annually. Regional

festivals are generally intended to establish the identity of individual regions

and offer entertainment to boost tourism and to stimulate the regional

economy. In the 21st century, however, these festivals need to function as

sources of creativity as well as fun.

With hope for the Tripitaka festival to develop into a global festival enriching

all participants with creativity and inspiration in the years ahead, I want to

make a few suggestions from the viewpoint of cultural economics.

First, the festival has the key for success on the inside, not the outside. The

Tripitaka Koreana is globally recognized for its outstanding universal value:

the 81,258 printing blocks are placed on the UNESCO Memory of the World

Register, and the two wooden sutra pavilions on the UNESCO World Heritage

List. This means the superior content quality and originality of the festival has

been guaranteed by the world’s leading experts in various fields. Taking

advantage of this illustrious recognition, the festival organizers should

encourage interdisciplinary studies of both assets and incorporate the research

results with the cultural and historical legacies of neighboring regions.

Secondly, the festival organizers should highlight the purpose of the Tripitaka

Koreana and its production in ways that expand the festival into a national

celebration of the spirit of peace and unity contained in the woodblocks,

recalling that the people of Goryeo struggled to expel foreign invaders with the

power of culture.

Timber from sargent cherry and birch trees were transported from faraway

regions such as Jeju, Wan and Geoje islands to supply wood to produce the

printing blocks. Innovative methods were devised for permanent conservation

of wood. While undertaking a herculean project involving a huge number of

people from different regions, those who were in charge managed to maintain

remarkable technical consistency. The technology of woodblock production

eventually led to the epoch-making invention of movable metal type for

printing. All these historical facts should be incorporated into the festival

seamlessly.

Finally, the festival should shed light on the international relations and

exchange that resulted in the Tripitaka compilation in Korea during the Goryeo

Dynasty, so it would grow into a genuinely global event. The original Sanskrit

scriptures written in ancient India were introduced to China via Central Asia to

be translated into Chinese. Then the Chinese texts were brought into Korea to

be compiled into a complete canon in woodblocks, and the prints from these

woodblocks were carried to Japan. Considering the poor transportation means

at the time, the journey must have involved enormous human endeavors and

episodes, which might be dubbed the “Tripitaka Road,” the intellectual

counterpart to the Silk Road that spread material culture.

These are only some of the essential elements necessary for the Tripitaka

festival to mature into a global event. The festival organizers will have to exert

extraordinary efforts to solicit many valuable ideas from home and abroad.

The old saying goes, “well begun is half done.” I want to ask all those

involved in the Millennial Anniversary of the Tripitaka Koreana to continue to

do their best to help all visitors enjoy and experience the invaluable cultural

asset of humanity.

[Hankook Ilbo, November 5, 2011]



Japan Returns Looted Documents after 100 Years

News Commentary Yonhap News Agency

It’s easy to get robbed but trying to reclaim lost items is quite a different

matter, not to mention it may take ages for them to be returned. On December

6, however, a pile of books did return. On this day, Japan gave back 1,200

ancient Korean books.

These books had been stored at Japan’s Imperial Household Agency after they

were taken away during the Japanese colonial period. They include 167

volumes of 81 royal protocols, called uigwe, of the Joseon Dynasty; 938

volumes of 66 titles taken by then Resident-General Ito Hirobumi; 99 volumes

of two editions of “Jeungbo munheon bigo” (Expanded Reference

Compilation of Documents); and one volume of “Daejeon hoetong”

(Comprehensive Collection of National Codes).

In October, on the occasion of Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda’s visit, Japan

returned “Daerye uigwe” (The Royal Protocol on Grand Wedding, 1 volume),

“Wangseja garye dogam uigwe” (The Royal Protocol on the Wedding of

Crown Prince, 2 volumes) and “Jeongmyo eoje” (Handwritten Texts by King

Jeongjo, 2 volumes).

It was the second time this year that a massive amount of looted relics has

returned to Korea. In April and May, books taken away by French sailors from

Oegyujanggak, the Joseon Dynasty royal archives on Ganghwa Island, 145

years ago came back. These repatriated relics are a reflection of the nation’s

painful history. It is hoped that their return will help increase our self-esteem

and drum up renewed efforts to cement the foundation for co-prosperity with

neighbors.

Regarding the terms of return, there is a significant difference between France

and Japan. France returned the Oegyujanggak books on the condition of

permanent lease from the National Library of France, while Japan transferred

full ownership. France therefore maintains possession of the returned books

and Korea must renew their lease every five years. But Japan handed over

ownership to the Cultural Heritage Administration of Korea.

The return of the Joseon royal protocols is all the more significant as they will

add to the value of the entire uigwe that are placed on the UNESCO Memory

of the World Register. It also is noteworthy that with the latest batch, all of the

books taken by Ito, the first resident-general and the chief instigator of

aggression, have been returned.

Ninety volumes of 11 titles from among the books seized by Ito were returned

in 1965, in accordance with an “agreement on cultural properties” signed by

Korea and Japan earlier that year. It is truly fortunate that all the remaining

books have now returned home. Japan deserves due recognition for faithfully

delivering on former Prime Minister Naoto Kan’s promise in August last year

to repatriate the books to mark the centenary of Japan’s annexation of Korea.

The return of these priceless cultural assets indeed warrants much fanfare and

celebration. But more important is what lies ahead. All parties concerned

should pool their wisdom to find ways to carefully preserve the repatriated

books and make them fully demonstrate their value. Among the most

immediate tasks is to decide where to keep the books. The Cultural Heritage

Administration and the Buddhist community are waging a war of nerves over

the question.

The Cultural Heritage Administration seemingly believes that all repatriated

books should be kept at one place to increase their significance, whereas the

Buddhist community asserts the books from Japan should be returned to their

original royal archives on the grounds of Woljeong Temple on Mt. Odae. The

Buddhist circles have a strong voice because they mounted vigorous efforts to

get back overseas Korean cultural assets over the years.

It is hoped that the two sides will cooperate sincerely to find the best possible

solution in consultation with the cultural circles. Furthermore, the return of the

ancient books should be a wakeup call for Korea to step up efforts to bring

back its cultural properties illegally taken out of the country, which have been

tallied at approximately 14,000 pieces. These efforts should include careful

documentation of unidentified artifacts and precise investigations into how

they were taken away.

[December 6, 2011]



The Bibimbap Fever in Japan

Han Chang-man Tokyo Correspondent The Hankook Ilbo

The popularity of Korean pop culture in Japan, touched off by the feverish

fandom for actor Bae Yong-joon, dubbed the “Yonsama Syndrome,” is no

longer simply a social phenomenon but taking root as a part of contemporary

Japanese culture. It is now hardly a surprise to see Korean dramas aired on

Japanese television or Korean singers and actors appear in Japanese dramas.

Currently, Kim Tae-hee appears as the female lead character in Fuji TV’s new

series, “99 Days with the Superstar (Boku to Star no 99 Nichi),” making

headlines. Kim is the first Korean actress to play a leading role in a Japanese

drama. Japan’s pop critics say that the Korean Wave (hallyu) is no longer a

rare phenomenon or syndrome, but constitutes media content as familiar as

Hollywood films to many Japanese people.

Singers and actors are not the only contributors in spreading the Korean Wave

in Japan. Korean food such as kimchi and makgeolli (unrefined rice wine) also

played a significant role. The growing popularity of kimuchi (kimchi

pronounced in the Japanese way), altered to taste sweeter than the original

Korean type to suit the Japanese palate, once spawned concerns about Korea

losing its status as the “suzerain state” of kimchi. Under the surging influence

of the Korean Wave, however, an increasing number of Japanese are found to

seek out the spicy Korean-style kimchi, leading more major-scale distributors

to supply kimchi in Japan through direct business with Korean companies.

In recent years, bibimbap has emerged as another Korean food item making a

deep foray into Japan. Most Japanese people initially appeared hesitant to taste

this dish because of the spicy hot pepper paste used to mix rice with seasoned

condiments, but more and more Japanese are now craving that particular taste.

Riding the new wave, some of the leading packed-lunch franchises are

showcasing the Korean bibimbap on their menus. Some of the more radical

bibimbap lovers even buy the special stone pots used for making “stone pot

bibimbap” to enjoy it at home.

The ingenious value of bibimbap was once again proved at the World Travel

Fair held at Tokyo Big Sight early last month. At the event participated by the

tourist authorities and airliners of over 100 countries, the Korean booth was

among the most popular and in particular, all of the 500 free tasting vouchers

for the bibimbap lunches offered in Korean Air flights disappeared in less than

10 minutes.

A non-verbal performance on the theme of bibimbap, titled “Bibop Korea,”

was held last weekend at the citizens’ hall in earthquake-hit Sendai,

northeastern Japan. In a combination of beatbox, a cappella and b-boying, the

show dramatized the making of bibimbap by mixing ingredients in the five

colors (blue, white, red, black and yellow) representing the five cardinal

directions of east, west, south, north and center, respectively, to create a

harmonized taste. The show is reputed as a representative performing arts

piece for promoting Korean cuisine abroad.

About 1,000 Sendai citizens were invited to the show which was a part of

Korea-Japan friendship night festivities. They responded enthusiastically with

applause and cheers. Toward the closing of the show, a Japanese member of

the audience was invited onto the stage to precisely pick out an authentic

Korean-style bibimbap dish from among a number of dishes made of varied

mixtures of ingredients. The second part of the program included a food

tasting session, where the local citizens spent a joyful evening sampling

Korean food dishes such as gujeolpan (platter of nine delicacies), white

cabbage kimchi and soy sauce-flavored tteokbokki (rice pasta with vegetables

and meat), as well as bibimbap.

Years ago, a Japanese journalist faced a barrage of criticism for commenting

that he thought bibimbap actually had little substance in spite of its tempting

look. The journalist later backed down, claiming he was quite fond of the

Korean rice dish himself, but through the incident he learned how much

Koreans love bibimbap. The current bibimbap craze in Japan is delicious proof

that Koreans were not wrong in strenuously defending it as a substantial

delicacy in terms of both appearance and content.

[November 7, 2011]



Image of Koreans across a Century

Oh Tae-jin Senior Editorial Writer The Chosun Ilbo

“The upper classes, paralyzed by the most absurd of social obligations, spend

their lives in inactivity. To the middle class no careers are open; there are no

skilled occupations to which they can turn their energies. The lower classes

work no harder than is necessary to keep the wolf from the door.”

So wrote the English geographer Isabella Bishop in her book, “Korea and Her

Neighbours,” to describe the Korean society during the late Joseon Dynasty.

She visited the country four times between 1894 and 1897 and pointed to three

major ills that plagued its society: the collapse of the state system, corrupt

bureaucracy and parasitic nobility. Bishop assessed Koreans as being the most

inferior of races and destined to be hopeless before she met ethnic Korean

immigrants in Russia.

Bishop noted that the Korean immigrants, freed from government interference that would have bound them back at home, had successfully built clean, vibrant and prosperous settlements in Russia. She went on to describe how these Koreans in a different environment had changed: “the suspiciousness and indolent conceit, and the servility to his betters··· have very generally given place to an independence and manliness.” She also suggested that there was “the hope that their countrymen in Korea, if they ever have an honest administration and protection for their earnings, may slowly develop into men.” In 1947 Douglas MacArthur, then Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers in Japan, said that Koreans unlike the Japanese were not ready for democracy and were in need of a powerful and authoritarian ruler. The ensuing Korean War further extended and deepened the negative perception of Koreans held by others. One exception is John Toland, who won a Pulitzer Prize for his book on World War II Japan, “The Rising Sun.” He saw Koreans as a people of a strong character of a force comparable to that of a storm. More recently, Google Chairman Eric Schmidt on his return from a visit to Seoul posted a picture on his personal Website. The photo was of a proverb he had found in the men’s room at the POSCO Center. It read: “Winning isn’t everything, but wanting to win is.” Apparently inspired by the Korean spirit of challenge, he added: “From a tough war in the 1950s to a real economic miracle.” The globally-renowned investor Warren Buffett after his visit to Korea this spring commented that Korea has several success factors to its advantage. At the latest G20 summit, Bill Gates praised Korea as the only country to have successfully transformed from a recipient to a donor of aid. The potential for such achievement was glimpsed by Bishop 110 years ago, when she wrote: “Koreans ought to be a happy and fairly prosperous people.” I wonder if we are not the only ones being too critical of what we see in the mirror.

[November 28, 2011] www.koreafocus.or.kr


- Kaesong Industrial Complex Development and Inter-Korean Relations

- Korea’s ODA Policy and its Role as a Bridge between Advanced and

Developing Countries

- In Search of the Roots of the Hallyu

- Three Kings of K-Pop Riding the Crest of the Korean Wave

Kaesong Industrial Complex Development and Inter-Korean

Relations

Cho Bong-hyun Research Fellow IBK Economic Research Institute

I. Introduction

Economic cooperation between South and North Korea has nearly been

suspended since a government decision on May 24, 2010, following the

sinking of the South Korean Navy patrol craft Cheonan in the West (Yellow)

Sea by a North Korean torpedo. The Kaesong (Gaeseong) Industrial Complex

near the North-South border is the only surviving cooperation project in North

Korea. Even new construction and expansion of existing facilities in the

complex was frozen under the South Korean government’s restrictive policy.

At present, 110 South Korean firms are operating light industry plants in

Kaesong, employing 48,000 North Koreans. The industrial park covers an area

of 66 square kilometers about 10 kilometers north of the Demilitarized Zone

which has divided the Korean peninsula since the 1950-53 Korean War.

Attention was drawn to the complex when Rep. Hong Joon-pyo, chairman of

the ruling Grand National Party, visited it on September 30 to look into the

problems facing South Korean enterprises operating there. Hong’s visit, the

first made by a government party head since the inception of the industrial

park seven years ago, helped reconfirm the importance of the joint project in

inter-Korean relations.

Though still faint, some signs of change can be detected. It was reported that

seven new plants were given construction permits. The road between Kaesong

city proper and the industrial complex also will be repaired by South Korean

firms and a fire station and an emergency medical service facility will be built

in the complex. Commuter bus service for employees will be extended to 40

kilometers from the complex from 20 kilometers.

The Kaesong Industrial Complex should be the catalyst for further inter-

Korean economic cooperation, if not for resolution of the complicated

political, military and nuclear problems surrounding the Korean peninsula.

Resolving KIC issues will broaden the base for bilateral contact, which could

regenerate humanitarian and economic aid to the North, thereby leading to the

restoration of mutual trust. Then a thaw in overall relations between the two

Koreas could be expected.

The industrial park could help revive North Korea’s moribund economy and

change its overall economic system while serving as a new growth engine for

the South Korean economy. In short, it could offer economic synergy as a

model of mutually beneficial cooperation.

It is necessary to guarantee that the park’s operations will continue to develop

regardless of changes in political relations between the two Koreas in the years

ahead. The resident enterprises should secure strong competitiveness for

further growth with the two sides cooperating to resolve major pending

problems and establish long-term development plans.

This study reviews the significance of the joint industrial project in volatile

inter-Korean relations, focusing on its possible role in reinvigorating bilateral

economic cooperation. The study also suggests solutions to various problems

at the complex with a brief preview of its future.

II. Economic Significance of the Kaesong Industrial Complex

1. Locomotive of Inter-Korean Economic Projects

The Kaesong Industrial Complex (hereafter KIC) has served as a locomotive

for inter-Korean economic cooperation. Trade volume between the two Koreas

as well as the number of reciprocal visits has increased in tandem with the

growth of the KIC. Even after the South Korean government unveiled

measures restricting inter-Korean trade and investment on May 24, 2010, the

KIC continued to maintain exchanges of materials and people, though the

volumes were reduced.

Since its inception in 2004, the total volume of trade through the joint

industrial complex has reached US$5,264,110,000, of which inward shipments

stood at $2,206,810,000 and outward shipments amounted to $3,057,300,000.

During 2010 which witnessed the North’s sinking of the Cheonan and artillery

attack on Yeonpyeong Island, trade through the KIC recorded a record volume

of $1,442,860,000 – $705,270,000 inbound and $7,037,590,000 outbound.

As these figures indicate, the weight of KIC in trade between the two Koreas

has grown rapidly. KIC’s relative importance calculated by trade volume was

6.5 percent in 2004. It went up to 22.4 percent in 2007, 75.5 percent in 2010

and 99 percent as of August in 2011. The high percentages in the past two

years are the result of the May 24 measures, but the absolute trade amount

through the KIC did increase impressively.

The number of South Korean visitors to the industrial park has increased

annually expect in 2009. The total number was 123,000 in 2010, which was

twice that of 2006. The proportion of KIC visitors to the overall number of

South Korean visitors to the North increased from 60.9 percent in 2006 to 94.5

percent in 2010 and 99.2 percent during the first eight months in 2011. It may

be said that the KIC is virtually the only gateway between the two Koreas with

exchanges through other channels nearly stalled.

KIC is also South Korea’s main investment in North Korea. Only two or three

cooperative projects were kicked off in North Korea each year before the KIC

began operations. Since their arrival, KIC enterprises have spearheaded South

Korean investment in the North. As of August 2011, KIC accounted for 81.8

percent of the total South Korean investment and economic cooperation in

North Korea.

As seen above, the KIC has powered inter-Korean economic cooperation.

Besides their motivating presence in the complex itself, KIC enterprises are

connected to the local community around Kaesong city through customer

processing subcontracts and transportation of equipment, raw materials and

products.

2. Catalyst for Changes in North Korea

The KIC can be a catalyst for change in North Korean society. In fact, the

people of Kaesong and its surrounding areas are almost entirely dependent on

the industrial complex for their livelihoods. The number of North Koreans

employed at the complex passed the 10,000 mark in November 2006 and

continued to increase to 48,000 as of August 2011. More than 70 percent of the

workforce are women in their 30s or younger. Two out of every 10 workers

have a junior college education or more.

KIC is causing significant changes to the mindset and behavior of its workers.

According to South Korean managers of KIC enterprises, North Korean

employees were initially antagonistic toward South Korea but have gradually

developed an understanding of South Koreans. The North Koreans at the

complex are exposed to the workings of a market economy and can taste its

fruits in a fine working environment, so much so that there are many job

applicants.

For the North Koreans, the KIC enterprises are “dream” places offering higher

payments and good fringe benefits. Their approach to work is changing from

passive to proactive. When their plant is under deadline pressure for product

delivery, they volunteer for overtime work and sometimes even meet on their

own to discuss how to achieve better performance.

Cosmetic items and confectionaries distributed by KIC enterprises to their

employees are great favorites. They enjoy using South Korean cosmetics and

eating Choco Pie cookies during breaks. The daily ration of Choco Pie cookies

has increased from two or three pieces to as many as 10. Six million Choco

Pies are now delivered to the Kaesong complex every month, a 10-fold

increase since 2007.

Many North Korean workers actually don’t eat the cookies. They may put the

cookies in the savings pool with other workers, give them to their families or

trade them with other goods on the black market, where they are a hot

commodity. Some secret vendors specializing in Choco Pie are at work in

towns along the Chinese border as well as in marketplaces. With a South

Korean label on their wrappings, Choco Pies may be regarded as a symbol of

capitalism and South Korean affluence seeping into North Korean society –

and irritating North Korean authorities.

By learning about the mechanisms of a market economy and jointly tackling

problems with South Koreans, the North Koreans realize the merits of

different systems and may contemplate the possibility of changing their own

system. Further KIC expansion will mean more employees, who may develop

a certain affinity to South Koreans and contribute to easing differences

between the two societies when the time comes to integrate them.

3. Checking the Expansion of North Korea-China Cooperation

Seoul’s May 24 directive prompted North Korea to rapidly increase

cooperation with China. This raises the question whether inter-Korean

cooperation and North Korea-China ties are interchangeable or complementary

relationships.

The fact that China is replacing South Korea as the key partner of economic

cooperation suggests an interchangeable nature. But some argue that the

currently growing cooperation between China and the North could be creating

a favorable environment for future cooperation between North and South

Korea.

Inter-Korean trade, which started in 1989, grew by an average of 56.3 percent

annually (excluding the KIC trade) until 2008. Trade between the two Koreas

shrank by -25.4 percent in 2008, -27.0 percent in 2009 and -36.4 percent in

2010. The total volume stood at $470 million last year, the lowest since 1991.

In contrast, trade between China and North Korea amounted to $3.47 billion in

2010, an increase of 32 percent from 2009 and the highest since 1998, when

China began to announce its trade volume with the North. During the first

eight months of 2011, bilateral trade reached $3.6 billion, an 82 percent

increase over the same period in 2010. North Korea’s exports to China during

the January-August period hit $1.55 billion, 140 percent more than the figure

in the same period of 2010, and imports rose by 54 percent to $2.07 billion.

The primary reason for the steep rise was the suspension of inter-Korean trade.

As the supply of light industry goods from the South came to a halt, the North

turned to China.

China’s investment in North Korea also is leaping with the start of their joint

development projects in the Rajin-Sonbong area at the eastern end of the

border and Hwanggumpyong in the west. The overall picture is far different

than 2001, when the North’s Sinuiju Special Economic Zone on the Chinese

border crumbled. The convergence of interests from both sides is accelerating

and diversifying cooperation in what may become a new era of Sino-North

Korean economic relations.

Attracted by low wages and abundant resources, Chinese enterprises are

rushing into North Korea with a variety of projects, including customer

processing, manufacturing, logistics, mining, and infrastructure (ports,

railways and roads) construction. Central and provincial governments are

taking up these projects so they don’t appear to be short-term ventures.

What effect will the growing China-North trade have on North Korea’s

economic reform? It certainly will be a positive catalyst. In order to attract

substantial Chinese capital, Pyongyang will be compelled to change its rules

and systems, establish a financial infrastructure to receive investments, and

guarantee freedom of individual and corporate activities. If North Korea tacks

toward the market economy, it could benefit South Korea.

But there also will be considerable negative effects. If the North continues to

seek China’s help in wading through its chronic economic difficulties, North

Korea’s economic dependence on China cannot but be deepened and as a

consequence, sanctions against the North by South Korea and the international

community will be diluted. Even if relations between the two Koreas improve

in the days ahead, South Korea will have narrow chances to seek economic

cooperation with the North under China’s dominance.

Under these circumstances, the KIC can have a significant effect of

counterbalancing China’s economic influence on the North. The complex will

remain an important channel of economic contacts with North Korea while

other opportunities are closed. KIC expansion is also needed to prepare for a

common economic community to be realized through the reunification of the

peninsula.

III. Five Current Issues at the Kaesong Industrial Complex

1. Aftermath of the May 24 Measures

The government’s May 24 restrictions called for reduced South Korean

personnel, blocked South Korean investments and a ban on new enterprises at

the KIC.

The number of resident staff members was cut to 550 from 1,000 and then was

increased to 700-800 in April 2011. The reduced staff meant that more South

Koreans had to commute to KIC every day, resulting in increased fatigue,

unsatisfactory plant maintenance, lower productivity and higher percentage of

faulty products. Between January and May in 2010, monthly productivity

increased at an average of 44.16 percent. It fell abruptly to 19.9 percent

between June and December, and recovered slightly to an average of 22.8

percent in January-August this year.

Production volumes of KIC firms leveled off from a monthly average of

$222,000 per enterprise between January and May 2010 to $224,000 for the

rest of the year and then rose a little to $267,000 this year.

New investment in the KIC firms is prohibited with the authorities checking

the delivery of equipment to the complex. KIC firms cannot increase

production through plan facility expansion and customer processing in

Kaesong city outside the complex is also impossible. Firms receiving

increased orders cannot deliver on them and some even relocate their

production facilities to a third country.

A bigger problem is the indefinite delay of plant construction by firms that

already have secured land at the complex. They took out loans to secure plant

sites and reduced their production facilities at home in anticipation of

relocation to the KIC. Following the May 24 directive, they have continued to

pay interest on their loans while payments for land in Kaesong have not been

recovered. Those who are unable to wait for construction permit will have to

find costlier alternative sites in other countries. Some are on the brink of

bankruptcy.

After Grand National Party chairman Hong Joon-pyo’s visit to the KIC, the

government allowed construction to resume at partially built plants. Seven

companies can now restart construction of new plants while five other firms

will be individually examined to determine whether to let them resume their

work to expand existing production facilities. The seven companies had their

work suspended when construction was 44 to 84 percent complete.

During their talks with the new minister of unification on October 20, the

representatives of KIC firms requested positive approaches of the government

to encourage new investments in the complex and to provide financial support

for investors.

Time has come to exhibit flexibility and apply more pragmatic policies on the

KIC. The South Korean government needs to consider first allowing new

investments followed by permission to expand plant facilities, an increase in

South Korean resident personnel, resumption of customer processing outside

the complex, and replenishment of infrastructure. Then the authorities should

address the problem of improving transportation, customs and

communications services for the complex. These steps will be helpful in

seeking a breakthrough in relations between the two Koreas.

2. Manpower Supply and Labor Management

North Korean authorities have failed to meet the requests of South Korean

firms at the KIC regarding the number, age and gender of workers. A chronic

shortage of quality workers is threatening the competitiveness of KIC

enterprises and the low productivity of older workers is problematic.

At present, 48,000 North Korean workers are employed by 110 firms, about

25,000 short of demand. It takes one to three months for vacancies to be filled.

The labor pool from Kaesong and its vicinity has been tapped out and

employing people from distant places causes the problem of building

dormitories.

Kaesong has a population of less than 200,000 and large-scale recruitment is

practically impossible. North Korean surveys in 2008 revealed that there were

143,000 people in the 22-44 age group in Kaesong city and three nearby

counties of Changpung, Kaepung and Panmun. Excluding 40,000 for farming

and 50,000 for other workplaces in the area, fewer than 50,000 are available

for the KIC.

South Korean firms do not have independent labor management rights. The

employer needs to have the power to recruit workers, give work assignments,

set production quotas, and provide technical guidance and education to

maintain and increase productivity. At the KIC, however, South Korean

managers do not have such powers. They manage their workforce through

North Korean worksite chiefs. Instructions are delivered through these North

Koreans, who often fail to convey them accurately. Wages are paid through the

North Korean government, which remains a major problem.

Employment is made through contracts between KIC enterprises and North

Korean labor supply office. The South Korean firms submit written forms

requesting the supply of workers to the labor office via the KIC Management

Committee. In principle, the firms are to conduct skill tests and interviews

with workers recommended by the North Korean office but, actually, they are

allotted to plants almost unilaterally by the labor office. As South Korean

enterprises compete with each other for workers, North Korean authorities

demand higher allowances in exchange for additional workers.

Hiring suitable workers does not totally solve the human resources headache.

A high absentee rate poses another problem. An average of 10 percent are

absent from work every day. Taking a day off without prior notice is common

and it is presumed that some of the absentees are summoned to education

sessions, which have been increased since the “Jasmine Revolution” in the

Middle East began this spring.

One urgent measure needed to supply more workers is to increase the number

of commuter buses and expand the area of their operation. At present, 250

buses are operating to transport KIC workers to and from their homes within

20 kilometers from the park. Of these, 45 buses will be assigned to new routes

extending up to 40 kilometers away. This will require repairing the 4.5km

route between Kaesong city and the industrial complex as well as road

extensions. That will allow workers from Kumchon, Pongchon and Pyongsan

in Hwanghae Province to commute every day.

The KIC should have systematic regulations to guarantee the independent

labor management by South Korean enterprises in the joint industrial area. In

Hwanggumpyong and Rajin-Sonbong special economic zones, where Chinese

development projects have just started, a labor contract system is in practice to

allow foreign investors to employ and dismiss North Korean workers freely.

Such a system is necessary for the KIC as well.

3. Transportation, Communications and Customs Clearance

Difficulties in transportation, communications and customs clearance have not

been much eased despite frequent requests for improvement. Besides, there are

misunderstandings between South Korean enterprises and their supervisory

organizations, namely, the Central Guidance Bureau for Special Zone

Development of North Korea and the inter-Korean KIC Management

Committee.

The cross-border flow of personnel and materials to and from KIC is marred

by rigid entry/exit procedures. It takes more than 10 years to secure an

entry/exit permit. After that, a separate application for a visitor’s pass is

required three days in advance. If the entry date is missed, all the documents

must be resubmitted.

Customs procedures for goods moving to and from KIC are inefficient. The

North Korean customs office is closed for about 80 days a year, making

customs clearance nearly impossible on public holidays and weekends. In

addition, South Korea’s Law on Inter-Korean Exchanges and Cooperation

lacks detailed provisions on immigration, customs and quarantine, so its

immigration and customs laws are applied for KIC. The cumbersome

procedures often disturb the activities of KIC enterprises and weaken their

competitiveness.

The whole procedures for the entry and exist of personnel and goods need to

be simplified with a domestic framework instead of the current international

protocols. It is desirable that the passage system between the Shenzhen special

economic zone and Hong Kong is adopted for the KIC. Particularly, entry/exit

permits and customs service should be available 24 hours a day. Multiple entry

permits also should be made available and customs inspection of export goods

needs to be made on a random basis instead of examining an entire shipment.

The communication means are currently confined to land-line telephone and

facsimile, and the Internet and cell phone services are not available. This

causes considerable trouble in communicating with the head offices in the

South and overseas clients. Using facsimile only for transmitting complicated

business documents such as design plans poses many problems. Use of cell

phones and the Internet is urgently needed.

The support system for KIC enterprises remains inadequate. The joint

industrial estate consists of South Korean companies but key decisions are

made by North Korean authorities. Communication between different

organizations is rarely smooth. Much of the problem is attributable to the

peculiar North Korean administrative system but there also are problems

resulting from the involvement of multiple agencies of both sides with

ambiguous division of responsibilities.

North Korea’s Kaesong Industrial District Law provides that an industrial zone

management organization (KIC Management Committee) operates the KIC

under the guidance and supervision of the Central Guidance Bureau for

Special Zone Development, which belongs to the Cabinet. South Korea’s

Gaeseong (Kaesong) Industrial Complex Management Committee, with its

own operational regulations, is to be supervised by North Korean management

authorities. Under this complex system, the roles and responsibilities of South

and North Korean organizations are not clearly defined.

The supervisory organizations of South and North Korea should cooperate to

establish a “one-stop” administrative service system to enhance the

international competitiveness of KIC enterprises and to draw up mid- and

long-term development programs for the joint industrial complex so that the

companies investing in the KIC could work out their own business plans with

long-term visions. An inter-Korean “cooperative governance” system is

needed to coordinate the conflicting interests between the two sides. The

South’s KIC Management Committee should also be able to provide

autonomous support for enterprises in terms of finance, management and

technological consulting, training of workers and sales promotion through

legal and systemic improvements.

4. Financial Support for Resident Enterprises

South Korean firms operating in the KIC are all small businesses which are

mostly under financial pressure, particularly in the wake of the May 24

measures of 2010. They fear that further deterioration of inter-Korean relations

could cause difficulties in repaying their lenders.

These firms have various disaster insurance policies and they are forced to pay

high insurance premiums due to the generally weak North Korean insurance

system. Besides, there is uncertainty about the North Korean insurer’s ability

to pay claims when disasters occurred. For fire insurance they all are insured

with the Korean National Insurance Company. Uninsured firms are fined.

KIC firms face increasing demand for capital but the available supply is

unfavorable. Initially, the government provided financial aid from the Inter-

Korean Cooperation Fund. Now the Ministry of Unification issues credit

guarantees for KIC firms to get loans from commercial banks, a system far

inferior to support given to other small and medium-sized businesses. The

Small and Medium Industry Promotion Corporation provides loans to KIC

enterprises from its “industrial foundation fund,” applying the same conditions

as those for domestic companies. For KIC enterprises, a major obstacle to

obtaining funding is that lenders do not recognize the collateral value of their

assets in the industrial zone in North Korea.

Considering the special circumstances of the KIC enterprises, it is fair to

provide at least the same, or even a little more favorable, level of financial

support as available to other small businesses. Currently, the KIC firms are

regarded neither as offshore businesses nor as domestic ones, consequently

losing supportive measures for either category. As long as there is a justifiable

reason to keep the operation of the KIC enterprises at a level desirable for the

future of inter-Korean relations, it is necessary to make a political decision to

provide financial support to compensate for their losses from “failures in the

market.”

5. Korea-U.S. FTA and the Rules of Origin

The Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement will take effect in January 2012.

Among controversial issues of the trade pact are the rules of origin to be

applied on KIC products and other goods from outward processing zones.

During its negotiations for the FTA with the United States, Korea demanded

exceptional treatment for KIC goods, but the U.S. side disagreed. In 2007, the

two countries agreed to establish a special committee on the Korean peninsula

outward processing zone but the joint panel has made little progress due to

political factors, including the North Korean nuclear development program.

The United States has designated North Korea as an enemy state on which

Washington slaps 400 percent tariffs.

The KIC products for sale within South Korea are labeled “Made in Korea

(Kaesong)” or “Made in DPRK (Kaesong),” depending on how much South

Korean material and investment was put into them. The proportion should be

60 percent or higher to get a South Korean label. This classification is not

applied for goods to be exported to the United States or the European Union.

Goods defined as products of North Korea are excluded from the most-

favored-nation treatment by the members of the World Trade Organization.

North Korean products are subjected to high U.S. tariffs or need importation

permission under the U.S. Trading with the Enemy Act. At present, goods from

the KIC are labeled “Made in Korea (Kaesong)” only when they were

originally produced in South Korea and were packaged or assembled in the

joint industrial complex.

Not many KIC products are exported because many countries including the

United States and Japan impose tariffs much higher than the most-favored-

nation rates applied to goods from WTO member states, virtually closing their

markets to KIC products. But, if the KIC is recognized as an outward

processing zone, goods from the complex will be exempted from tariffs,

gaining price advantage over goods from China and other competitors.

If all products from the KIC can be labeled “Made in Korea,” it would boost

their overseas appeal, invigorate the complex and activate overall inter-Korean

economic cooperation. Efforts are needed to explore broader domestic markets

for KIC goods as well as their export to Southeast Asia where trade barriers

are less visible.

Ultimately, it is crucial to introduce a “special rule of origin” in the Korea-U.S.

FTA to have KIC products labeled “Made in Korea” with the KIC classified as

an outward processing zone. Strategic diplomatic approaches may be sought in

this regard as the United States and North Korea are making direct contacts

prior to reopening the six-party denuclearization talks.

Major progress in the denuclearization process will be a prerequisite for the

designation of the KIC as an overseas processing zone. And it should be

guaranteed that North Korea’s income from the operation of the joint industrial

zone will not be used for military purposes. Moreover, the KIC’s overall

environmental conditions, labor practices, and wage and management systems

should be appropriately adjusted to meet the international standards of

overseas processing zones.

IV. Prospects of the Kaseong Industrial Complex

In the last year of the Lee Myung-bak administration, Koreans look forward to

future-oriented, practical development of inter-Korean relations. They want a

breakthrough in achieving stability and co-prosperity of the two Koreas under

the South’s initiatives.

To meet these expectations, the government is required to make a strategic end

to the current impasse and explore new possibilities. However, unconditional

compromise without any change in North Korean attitude is not desirable.

Seoul should be firm in principles but flexible in strategies.

The most realistic approach would be to promote economic cooperation before

addressing political and military problems. The long-studied gas pipeline

project through Russia, North Korea and South Korea, for example, awaits the

resumption of inter-Korean economic cooperation. The Kaesong Industrial

Complex offers the handiest and most practical solution to the current

stalemate. Its development would be a shortcut to better inter-Korean

economic cooperation, and a reasonable resolution of KIC issues would

contribute greatly to restoring trust between the two Koreas and open a new

phase in bilateral relations.

North Korea is expected to make a rather soft approach toward the South in an

attempt to gain aid and ease its economic difficulties. North Korea is aware

that economic help from China and Russia alone cannot raise the

impoverished country from the current hardships, especially in 2012, the target

year of proclaiming a “strong and prosperous nation.” This explains why

North Korea is hanging on to the KIC at a time when inter-Korean relations

are in the lowest ebb in decades. It is the only legal source of U.S. dollars for

the North and Pyongyang is supplying more workers to the complex just to

earn as many greenbacks as possible.

It is expected that South Korean firms with the authorities’ approval for

construction in the KIC will start building new plants or expand their existing

production facilities sooner or later. Repairs of the road between the industrial

park and Kaesong city are also expected to begin sometime before the end of

the year. The punitive measure of May 24, 2010 has virtually been lifted as far

as the KIC is concerned.

When more commuter buses are put into operation, North Korean authorities

will bring more manpower to the complex. The KIC Technical Education

Center will soon start its activities and the reopening of the Inter-Korean

Economic Cooperation Office will mean an official end to all restrictions at the

industrial zone.

An overall refurbishment of the KIC is recommended beyond merely restoring

the complex to the state before the May 24 measures. Continued stability and

development should be the goal of the industrial complex with constant

identification of problems facing the resident enterprises and joint cooperative

endeavors to address them. Efforts should also be made to attract Chinese,

American, European and Japanese businesses to make the KIC a truly

international industrial zone. Now is the time for the Northern and Southern

authorities to search for the best way to promote bilateral economic

cooperation from the vibrant scenes of the Kaesong Industrial Complex.

[KDI Review of the North Korean Economy, October 2011, published by the Korea

Development Institute] www.koreafocus.or.kr


Korea’s ODA Policy and Role as a Bridge between Advanced

and Developing Countries

Cho Tae-yul Ambassador for Development Cooperation Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade

I. Introduction

This study, based on an analysis of Korea’s official development assistance

(ODA), examines the challenges the nation faces to become a viable bridge

between advanced and developing countries in international development

cooperation.

Korea has continued to expand its official development assistance despite the

global financial crisis in recent years. Last year it joined the OECD

Development Assistance Committee (DAC) and led the introduction of the

G20 development agenda. This year the nation hosted the Fourth High Level

Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Busan, elevating its status a notch higher in the

international development cooperation community, which has noted Korea’s

shift from an aid recipient to a donor. There are now considerable expectations

and confidence in Korea’s role and contributions in international development

cooperation.

Korea regards international development cooperation as one way to enhance

its prestige and soft power in realizing the vision of “Global Korea.” But it

cannot win international support, particularly from developing countries,

simply by highlighting its own success. It is time for the nation to seriously

consider identifying its challenges and solutions to become an effective bridge

between developed and developing countries.

II. History of Korea’s International Development Cooperation

1. Recipient to Donor Country

1) Korea as Recipient of ODA

When the Korean War armistice went into effect in 1953, the nation was one of

the poorest countries in the world with per capita GDP of $67. Its postwar

reconstruction and all other matters depended on foreign assistance. Even

before the war, the nation was reliant on international help. Between national

liberation in 1945 and 1999, Korea received about $12 billion in economic aid

with more than $10 billion provided by the United States and Japan. The aid

included technology and capital goods as well as consumer goods, and

characteristically involved no debt cancellation.

Korea became an exemplary example of avoiding the foreign aid trap. Instead

of falling into chronic dependence on foreign aid, the nation used it as a

catalyst for economic and social development. With a strong will for

development and a firm sense of responsibility for its own fate, Korea made

the most of foreign aid through a “selection and concentration strategy.” Much

of the aid went into building key infrastructure, such as the Seoul-Busan

Expressway and Pohang Iron and Steel Co., laying the foundation for

economic development.

Korea’s GDP expanded from $1.3 billion in 1953 to $1.14 trillion (estimation)

in 2010, while its per capita GDP soared from $67 to $20,759 over the same

period. Delisted from the OECD’s recipient countries, Korea joined the OECD

DAC in 2010 to become the first nation to reach the donor ranks from the pool

of least developed nations.

2) Korea as Donor of ODA

Korea’s total overseas aid from 1987 to 2009 amounted to about $6.9 billion

(official OECD statistics). In 2010, about $1.2 billion (preliminary OECD

statistics) was provided in overseas aid, with 68 percent of the total amount

concentrated in Asia.

The history of Korea’s overseas aid began in the 1970s with small-scale

training programs in other developing countries through USAID funding. The

training programs were mostly intended to share understanding of diplomatic

and security issues among allies.

The nation set up the Economic Development Cooperation Fund and the

Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) in 1987 and 1991,

respectively, to create the institutional bases of official development

assistance. Overseas aid has been given in earnest since the 1990s. Since 2003,

the nation’s ODA budget has sharply increased through aid for Iraq and

Afghanistan and equity increases in the Multilateral Development Bank. While

the government’s total budget increased 8.17 percent on the annual average,

from 208.7 trillion won to 309.1 trillion won, in the 2005-2011 period, its

ODA budget rose 15.4 percent on the annual average, from 797.1 billion won

to 1.64 trillion won.

2. Korea’s International Development Cooperation in 2000-2009 and

Problems

The nation’s total foreign aid between 2000 and 2009 amounted to $5.1billion,

with the annual volume almost quadrupled from $210 million to $820 million.

Although Korea began to remarkably expand international development

cooperation during the decade, credit assistance and grants were made without

an integrated national policy. Consequently, goals differed. Credit assistance

was aimed at assisting the industrial development of developing countries,

stabilizing their economy and promoting overseas economic cooperation

(Economic Development Cooperation Fund Law). Grants were provided to

promote friendly cooperation and mutual exchanges with developing countries

as well as help their economic and social development (Korea International

Cooperation Agency Law).

Under a system segmented by bilateral and multilateral aid as well as by credit

assistance and grants, the International Development Cooperation Committee’s

ability to function as a control tower remains weakened. For bilateral aid, the

Ministry of Planning and Finance and the Export-Import Bank of Korea are in

exclusive charge of credit assistance, while some 30 different agencies,

including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, KOICA, other

government ministries and local administrations, are providing grants. For

multilateral aid, the Ministry of Planning and Finance is exclusively

responsible for international financial organizations, the Ministry of Foreign

Affairs and Trade for the United Nations, and other government ministries for

related international bodies.

Although Korea has expanded its foreign aid in a short time, it is still below

international standards in terms of the size, implementation system and

effectiveness of aid. Supporting varied projects for many countries and diverse

international organizations with limited financial resources, the effectiveness

of Korea’s assistance has been dragged down. Moreover, the lack of a

nationally integrated structure of aid provision has resulted in fragmented and

overlapping projects.

III. Efforts to Advance Official Development Assistance

To promote its official development assistance, Korea enacted the “Basic Law

on International Development Cooperation” in December 2009, and

announced the “Measures for Advancing International Development

Cooperation” in October 2010.

1. Direction for Promoting International Development Cooperation

Korea’s international development cooperation basically seeks to “reduce

poverty in developing countries, improve the human rights of women and

children, realize gender equality, accomplish sustainable growth and

humanitarianism, promote economic cooperation with partner countries, and

contribute to peace and prosperity of the international community (Article 3 of

the International Development Cooperation Law).” On the basis of these

principles, the nation aims to “provide hope for recipient countries, set

examples for the international community, and imbue the Korean people with

pride” through international development cooperation.

These fundamental goals reflect the nation’s intention to enhance its

international status and pride by increasing its international development

cooperation to levels commensurate with its national standing. The focus is on

eradicating poverty and enhancing self-reliance of developing countries while

respecting the norms of the international community, drawing on Korea’s

unique experience of growing into a donor country from a recipient in a

relatively short time.

Most of all, Korea aims to undertake aid projects that combine the different

development demands of recipients with the nation’s own characteristics.

Going beyond basic aid to combat poverty, it seeks to find cooperation

formulas in areas needed to make recipient countries stand on their own.

Instead of simply giving food to the hungry, it is important to understand the

reasons why they lack food and to solve the problem together so that they can

achieve a sustainable food supply.

Breaking away from its unfocused aid of the past, Korea aims to execute aid

programs more consistently according to a national strategy. It is trying to

improve aid effectiveness by organically integrating bilateral and multilateral

aid, credit assistance and grants, and aid for hardware development such as

infrastructure construction and aid for software development such as human

resources cultivation and technical education.

Korea aspires to provide “warm-hearted aid.” Instead of being obsessed with

seeking short-term interests from providing aid, the nation will place emphasis

on humankind’s common survival and prosperity through the development of

recipient countries, long-term friendship with recipients, and going one step

further, fulfilling its duties and responsibilities as a leading member of the

international community.

2. Basic Plans for Advancing International Development Cooperation

1) Quantitative Expansion and Qualitative Improvement of ODA

To advance international development cooperation, it is basically necessary to

increase the amount of official development assistance, especially the ratio of

ODA against gross national income. Korea’s ODA stood at $1.2 billion in

2010, ranked at 18th place among the 23 OECD DAC members. Especially, its

ODA/GNI ratio hit the rock bottom with a mere 0.12 percent. The nation’s

ODA/GNI ratio is far below the DAC members’ average of 0.32 percent, and

further falls short of the 0.7 percent committed by the international community

at the U.N. High Level Panel on Financing Development, held in Monterey,

Mexico, in 2002.

To upgrade the nation’s ODA to levels congruous to its economic size, the

International Development Cooperation Committee has decided to raise the

ODA/GNI ratio to 0.25 percent by 2015. It also aims to maintain the ratio of

bilateral to multilateral aid at 7:3, similar to the average of OECD DAC

members.

With respect to the portions of credit assistance and grants in official

development assistance (in terms of net disbursement), Korea maintained a

37:63 ratio in 2009-2010, representing a far higher share of credit assistance

compared with the OECD DAC average ratio of 4:96. Considering various

circumstances, including aid provision already approved and implementation

of pledges made to recipient countries, the nation plans to maintain a 40:60

ratio until 2015, while making efforts to follow the trends of the international

community over the long term.

In terms of the binding nature of aid, too, Korea falls short of reaching

international trends or the average level of OECD DAC members. Korea’s

portion of nonbinding official development assistance stood at about 36

percent (43 percent for grants and 34 percent for credit assistance) in 2008, far

lower than the OECD DAC average of 86.5 percent. This is a remarkable

increase compared with 2004 when nonbinding aid’s share remained at a mere

4 percent, and the government plans to gradually raise the ratio to about 75

percent by 2015. As for grants, the government aims to jack up the portion of

nonbinding aid to 100 percent by 2015, while achieving the target percentage

for the least developed countries by 2012.

2) Efforts to Improve Aid Effectiveness

Korea is trying to improve aid effectiveness by eliminating inefficiency of aid

and increasing recipients’ satisfaction. It is attempting to establish an advanced

aid strategy in which the basic regional conditions of official development

assistance, allocation of financial resources, selection of target partners and

country-by-country support strategies are comprehensively linked to credit

assistance and grants. Through these efforts, the government is trying to

improve the predictability of aid and implement more systematic aid

programs.

With respect to regional allocation of financial resources, the Korean

government, while maintaining its Asia-oriented position, will provide more

support to Africa and Latin America as well, considering such factors as

geographical proximity, cultural affinity and increasing geopolitical

importance. To effectively use its limited financial resources in accordance

with the principle of “selection and concentration,” the nation will provide at

least 70 percent of its aid to 26 target partners.

The government plans to establish the “Country Partnership Strategy (CPS),”

an integrated country-by-country approach to 26 selected countries, by the end

of 2012, as the basic guideline for more effective implementation of official

development assistance in both types of credit assistance and grants. The

government will also strengthen cooperation among the agencies responsible

for providing credit assistance and grants, related ministries and other aid-

providing organizations throughout the stages of developing, selecting and

implementing projects.

The government is also strengthening cooperation with major donors and

recipients to improve aid effectiveness. To implement aid programs that suit

the development strategy of partner countries, it is enhancing ODA policy

consultation with other countries while increasing the role of overseas

diplomatic missions in ODA implementation, in an attempt to promote

“development cooperation that reflects the voices and demands from the

fields.” It is invigorating policy discussions with other donor countries to

coordinate aid programs.

The Foreign Ministry, which is responsible for dispensing grants, is holding

regular aid policy consultations with Japan, EU and Australia. The Planning

and Finance Ministry, which provides credit assistance, is also building close

networks with Japan and Australia. By coordinating with other donors on aid

for major partner countries, including Afghanistan, Pakistan and Vietnam,

Korea is seeking international division of work in aid provision.

3) Enhancing International Cooperation and Partnership

As part of the efforts to advance international development cooperation, Korea

is actively taking part in relevant discussions in the international community.

In order to implement an ODA policy that corresponds to trends in the

international community, the government dispatches officials of related

ministries and organizations to major international conferences such as the

OECD DAC high-level forums, the World Bank Development Committee

sessions, and meetings related with the U.N. Millennium Development Goals.

Korea is contributing to international efforts to formulate development

cooperation norms by jointly hosting the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid

Effectiveness with the OECD in Busan, and volunteering to play advisory role

to the U.N. Development Cooperation Forum. About 2,500 delegates,

including government representatives from 160 countries and heads of 70-odd

international organizations, attended the Busan forum.

The high-profile gathering examined the results of past debates on the

effectiveness of existing aid programs, such as the Paris Declaration and the

Accra Agenda for Action, and looked into future tasks. Thus the debate on

development cooperation in the international community came to place focus

on “development effectiveness.” Breaking away from the existing international

development cooperation architecture centering on donors and recipients, the

forum served as an occasion to build a comprehensive and inclusive

partnership that embraces diverse players of development cooperation,

including emerging economies, private businesses and civic groups.

Korea is playing a leading role in holding these discussions is also proposing

an array of systems concerning “women and development” and “effective

states and institutions,” based on lessons learned from its development

experience. In June 2011, this writer became the first Korean member of the

Advisory Group of the U.N. Development Cooperation Forum, which is

leading discussions on international development cooperation in the United

Nations, and has since been providing advice on the forum’s operating strategy

and direction for promoting international development cooperation.

At a time when the international community finds it difficult to maintain its aid

volume of the past amid slow economic growth in major industrial countries

and aid fatigue in some donor countries, Korea is actively taking part in

discussions on developing nontraditional financial resources for development.

While maintaining or expanding the existing innovative methods of raising

development resources, such as collecting 1,000 won per air ticket for an

international antipoverty fund, the government is considering introducing even

fresher means to secure development funding.

4) Strengthening Humanitarian Aid Activities

Disasters are occurring increasingly frequently because of climate change and

global warming, resulting in sharp increases of the need for humanitarian aid,

including emergency relief activities, throughout the world. Korea needs to

stage humanitarian aid activities corresponding to its status as a member of the

OECD DAC.

Currently, the government is continuing efforts to increase its emergency relief

budget and improve the emergency relief system. This year alone, the nation

provided emergency relief for regions hit by earthquakes in New Zealand and

Japan, military conflicts in Libya, and drought in the Horn of Africa. During

the Great Earthquake in northeastern Japan, Korea was the first country to

send an emergency relief squad and the last one to withdraw. In the process the

nation was able to establish an advanced emergency relief system with the

Foreign Ministry coordinating and supporting private relief activities.

IV. Ways to Play the Role of a Viable Bridge

1. National Consensus on the Need for Development Cooperation

Korea escaped postwar poverty only a few decades ago, so not a few Koreans

still harbor rather stingy perceptions about development assistance. U.N.

Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has been continuously stressing the need for

enhancing development cooperation to the Korean public and media, making a

considerable contribution to changing the views of Koreans, who still show a

noticeable gap of awareness with people in advanced countries.

The nation needs continuous, pan-governmental efforts to spread the notion

that international development cooperation is not merely helping needy

countries but a way to increase Korea’s national interests in the long run. Aid

would boost economic growth in recipient countries, creating new markets for

Korean exports and eventually contributing to Korea’s national interests

beyond material benefits.

Korea’s unique development experience is a valuable diplomatic asset

enabling the nation to play the role of a bridge between advanced and

developing countries as well as enhancing its own prestige and soft power.

Professor Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University in the United States also

defined Korea’s development experience as a “desirable model of ODA.”

2. Clear Views and Voices Befitting a “Bridging” Role

A “bridging” role means acting as a go-between for developed and developing

countries and appropriately harmonizing their interests and benefits to offer

viable alternatives. To this end, it is necessary for Korea to express clear views

and positions on the multilateral diplomatic stage. South-North problems need

to be dealt with through more creative thinking and strategy so as to invite

international judgment and awareness that Korea’s participation and

contribution is crucial for developing multilateral consensus.

The development issue is closely connected to almost all issues contained in

the global agenda of Korea’s diplomacy, including not only economic, social

and environmental problems but also democracy, politics and security issues.

Therefore, Korea ought to think seriously about how to create added values

based on its unique experience of political and economic development.

At contentious international conferences that deal with the South-North issues,

Korea has generally taken a neutral stance to avoid upsetting either side or

whole-heartedly backed advanced countries, rather than mediating differences,

which invited rebukes from other developing nations. The G20 Seoul Summit

last year was a rare case of Korea playing a bridging role between developing

and advanced economies.

Because the G20 Summit was created to collectively deal with the global

financial crisis and reforming the international financial system, some of the

member countries were lukewarm about discussing development issues. As the

chair country, however, Korea felt the need to enhance the status of the G20 as

the premier forum for global economic cooperation and its members were

obliged to address the development issue, the foremost concern of most of the

170 developing countries that were not represented in the group.

Korea emphasized the need for recognizing developing countries as major

partners of global economy and new growth engines, because the development

of underdeveloped countries creates demand and contributes to attaining the

G20’s goals of achieving global economic recovery and rebalancing the global

economic system.

As a result, the G20 Seoul Summit adopted the “Seoul Development

Consensus for Shared Growth” and “Multi-Year Action Plan on

Development,” which focused on introducing nine core issues that are

essential to replenishing the growth potential of developing countries and

removing bottlenecks on the way to their development toward the ultimate aim

of sustainable economic growth. African countries gave an enthusiastic

welcome to the G20 development agenda, describing the “Seoul Development

Consensus” as “African development Consensus.”

Since the adoption of the G20 development agenda, Korea’s position in the

international development cooperation community has improved beyond

comparison, which is attributable to its active coordination of the interests of

both advanced and developing countries. The G20 development agenda was

reflected in the outcome document of the U.N. Conference on Least

Developed Countries this year amid the support of G77, a group of developing

countries, acquiring a solid reputation as an international development

initiative true to its name. This is proof that both advanced and developing

countries recognized Korea’s role as a genuine “bridge” between them.

3. Development Cooperation Complying with Norms and

Recommendations of the International Community

There is more work that needs to be done. If Korea puts forth only its opinions

and assertions without leading others by example, the nation will find it hard

to secure support from other countries in its “bridge” status. Thus, it must, at

the very least, abide by the basic norms and recommendations of the


Korea should try to increase its international assistance to levels befitting a

member of the OECD DAC, and step up efforts to improve aid effectiveness

by complying with various norms and recommendations of the OECD DAC.

Continuous efforts are needed to increase development assistance, expand

grants and nonbinding aid, and prevent overlapped and segmented aid

programs.

Moving beyond the development cooperation area, Korea also has to fulfill its

role and duty in other global issues, such as the U.N. peacekeeping activities

and WTO’s multilateral trade negotiations, in order to act as a responsible

member of the international community. To do so, the nation must close the

gap between its self-image as a developing country and its appearance as seen

by the international community in the shortest possible time. This is one of the

nation’s biggest diplomatic challenges. Pursuing short-term interests by

trespassing boundaries between developed and developing countries will

damage the integrity and credibility of the nation.

4. Creating Unique Development Cooperation Contents

Considering its economic size, Korea can hardly compete with advanced

countries in terms of aid volume. It should therefore try to differentiate itself in

terms of aid quality by using its unique development experience. Among the

areas crucial for the growth of developing countries, Korea should identify

those in which it can clearly show the results and efficiency of development

aid and policy, and work out an applicable model.

For example, the contribution of education and partnership of public and

private sectors to Korea’s development could offer an excellent model. Faced

with scarce natural resources and indigenous capital, Korea made human

resources a development engine and integrated its education policy into the

overall national development plan. To supply an able workforce, education

was broadened during each phase of industrialization. Elementary education

was expanded during the light industry-led period and secondary and higher

education was expanded during the period of industrialization led by heavy

and chemical industries.

Korea’s industrialization also succeeded thanks to a strategy focusing on the

cultivation of core, value-added industries, enabling them to climb up the

value chain. The task was done by allowing the private sector to actively take

part in the development process through an effective public-private

partnership.

Still, there is one thing Korea should remember: There is no guarantee that the

nation’s successful examples can be effectively applied in other countries. If

the nation pushes to transplant its experience and success stories in countries

with different social, historical and cultural backgrounds, it will only backfire.

Development cooperation should correspond to recipients’ strategies with the

realization that there is no “one-size-fits-all formula.”

5. Humble Cooperation Sharing Both ‘Success Stories’ and ‘Failure

Stories’

Playing the role of a bridge, Korea should share its “failure stories” as well as

“success stories.” This will substantively help underdeveloped countries

overcome the problems they encounter in various stages of development.

Korea’s rapid economic development through the government’s strong drive to

nurture heavy and chemical industries was an experience that developing

countries should take note of. But as the old adage goes, “you learn more from

failure than success.” Korea’s heavy industry policy and its adverse

aftereffects could be even more instructive to developing countries.

Recounting the inefficiency resulting from excessive and overlapping

investment, moral hazards of business enterprises, environmental pollution and

undue overseas borrowing leading to the financial crisis of 1997-98, can

provide priceless lessons for developing countries and help them avoid

repeating the same mistakes.

There are criticisms that advanced countries unilaterally enforce their own

development models under the pretext of international development

cooperation, through which they seek petty national interests by, for instance,

expanding their influence on the recipients. Under this situation, Korea will be

able to solicit greater sympathy and understanding from developing countries

if it opts for “modest” development cooperation by sharing not only its

successes but also its failures, and play the role of a genuine bridge in the

process.

V. Conclusion

Korea’s leap from one of the world’s poorest countries that depended on other

countries’ relief supplies for survival to a major player in the international

development cooperation community by, for instance, joining the OECD

DAC, a club of advanced donor countries, is something that the nation might

as well do itself proud as well as an incident that the international community

could stare in wonder.

Considering the grim reality in which nearly 800 million global villagers are

subsisting on less than $2 a day, the nation should not remain content with its

present accomplishment but continue to enhance international development

cooperation to make a greater contribution to humankind’s co-prosperity. This

will help the nation become a respectable member of the international

community and achieve its vision of “Global Korea.”

With a short history and meager experience in development assistance, Korea

should attempt to differentiate itself from advanced donor countries not in

quantity but in quality of aid. Its role as a “bridge” between advanced and

developing countries can probably offer a clue for such differentiation. This is

because Korea is receiving remarkable degrees of confidence and expectations

from the rest of the world as the only country that has jumped from one of the

poorest recipient countries to an advanced donor nation by accomplishing

industrialization and democratization in just half a century.

If Korea can create a development cooperation model based on its unique

experience, it will be able to give useful lessons and inspirations to developing

countries, especially those struggling to “escape from poverty,” and offer them

substantive help socially and economically. This will also help the nation

exploit its unlimited potential and expand intangible national interests in the

medium to long run through the increase of its soft power and prestige in the


Korea cannot play the role of a “bridge” with just diplomatic rhetoric and

slogans. The nation should seriously agonize to find out what added values it

can create with respect to development-related issues, and what it should do to

produce such values with creative thinking and strategy.

Korea’s “bridging” role between advanced and developing countries should

not be confined to development cooperation, but its objective should be clearly

reflected in the nation’s diplomatic agenda as part of action programs. It is

hard to deny that Korea has so far remained rather silent or maintained a

passive stance concerning most issues under the excuse of being equivocal as

neither an advanced nor a developing country. From now on, however, the

nation should try to identify areas where it can make more productive

contributions than others and perform a more active and positive role in the


[JPI Policy Forum, 2011-21, July 2011, published by the Jeju Peace Institute]



In Search of the Roots of the Hallyu

Lee Hang-bok Staff Reporter The Monthly JoongAng

It was the autumn of 2009, in the corner of a market in Nagoya, Japan. I was

standing in line in front of an okonomiyaki (savory Japanese street food) stall

when I made eye contact with the person next to me. When he heard I came

from Korea, after a somewhat perfunctory greeting, he suddenly started

singing and dancing with his friends: “Nobody, nobody but you, Nobody,

nobody but you···” It was the song “Nobody” by the Korean girl group the

Wonder Girls. To hear this song which had swept the Korean charts a year ago

come from the mouth of a stranger from another country was not so much

surprising as it was amazing. That I should meet a young American who sang a

Korean song and did the dance as well in a small Japanese town

In spite of this incident, I could not help suspecting that K-pop fever, as

reported by the press, was a bit of an exaggeration. But this is not the case in

the 20s age group. It seems young Koreans find it all quite natural, for they are

used to seeing young people around the world go wild over their culture.

The Battle of the Year, the oldest of the four biggest B-boy competitions in the

world, is also called the B-Boy Olympics, and since 2002, the competition has

been won six times by Korean teams such as Expression, Gambler, and Last

for One for their exuberant and creative movements. Koreans in their 40s and

50s will remember how awed they were by Michael Jackson’s signature

Moonwalk. But the opposite is happening with the 20-something B-boys.

Challenging the ascendency of the Western B-boys who started the whole

craze, they have even earned their envy by using Korean style dance

movements to create something new.

Fiendish New Generation of B-boys

It is not just one or two young Koreans who are distinguishing themselves

internationally in their chosen fields. The extent of change is such that their

feats are often described as “phenomenal.”

In pop music, the songs of young Koreans are resonating in the hearts of

young people around the world under the name of K-pop. In the overseas

concerts organized by entertainment companies that produce K-pop stars,

thousands of fans gathered and danced to the music and even sang the lyrics in

Korean. In the cover dance competition, where contestants copy the dances of

Korean pop songs, people come from nearby countries to compete and

YouTube is full of videos of them dancing.

When Pak Se-ri (Se Ri Pak) competed on the US LPGA tour in 1997, she won

two major competitions, the US Open and the LPGA championships. She now

has 25 victories under her belt and has become an LPGA legend. Thereafter, a

string of young golfers called the “Pak Se-ri Kids” also joined the LPGA tour

and have come to almost dominate the scene. This year there were 123 golfers

qualifying for the tour, and of them 43 were ethnic Koreans. In the men’s PGA

tour, of the total of 287 golfers there were seven Koreans, including Choi

Kyung-ju, who ranked fourth in earnings.

The English Premier League (EPL), the famous pro-football league, has also

become one of the fields where Koreans are competing. The first to join the

EPL was Park Ji-sung, who was followed by Lee Young-pyo, Seol Ki-hyeon,

Lee Chang-ryong, Ji Dong-won, and Park Chu-young. Swimming was one

area that seemed forever out of reach for Koreans due to the limitations of the

Asian physique, especially in freestyle. But one day an outstanding young

athlete named Park Tae-hwan seemingly came out of nowhere and seized an

Olympic gold medal.

In the most recent Winter Olympics, held in Vancouver, Korean skaters shone

not only in their traditional strong event, the short track, but also in speed

skating with Mo Tae-beom and Lee Sang-hwa winning gold in the men’s and

women’s 100m events, respectively, while Lee Seung-hun took gold in the

longest race of the event, the 10,000 meters.

Figure skating and rhythmic gymnastics are two more sports that did not fall

within Koreans’ interest in the past. Their lack of presence in these fields was

mainly due to the limitations of the Korean physique. As such, these sports

were almost sacred ground that could not be approached. But then Kim Yu-na

(Yuna Kim) achieved a record high score in the figure skating world

championships and went on to win the Olympic gold medal. This took the

world by surprise, but in fact no one was more surprised than the Koreans

back home.

What on earth is the source of these outstanding achievements?

One interpretation is the singular cultural DNA of the Korean people. All

peoples have the ability to distinguish themselves from others through

extensive training in their own particular historical, social and cultural

environments. This is what is known as the cultural DNA. It is what the

evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins called the “meme” in his book “The

Selfish Gene.” In a similar context, Lee O-young, former Korean culture

minister, used the term “cultural capital.”

“In explaining cultural capital Pierre Bourdieu says a person’s behavior or

perception of things is determined not by genes but by the cultural

environment that person has grown up in and experienced from youth,” Lee

says. “If Kim Yu-na’s grandmother had not bought her a pair of skates, where

would Kim be now? According to the theory, Kim’s success was determined

not by her DNA but the fact that her grandmother was in the position to buy

her a pair of skates. And this is what we call cultural capital. In this respect, it

can be said that the physical characteristics handed down from parents to

children is cultural capital as well.”

Stimulating the Dormant Cultural DNA of Koreans

It can be said the Korean cultural DNA is best represented by song and dance.

Records show that the love of song and dance has been a feature of the Korean

people from long in the past. This is not a conclusion we have reached on our

own. Many existing documents indicate that this is how the Korean people

were often viewed from the outside.

The Chinese history text “Book of Later Han” (Houhan shu) records in the

section on the “Dongyi” (“eastern foreigners” or “eastern barbarians”) that

“nearly all the Dongyi people enjoy drinking, singing and dancing” in its

reference to Korea. In its introduction of the Goguryeo Kingdom, another

Chinese history text, “Records of the Three Kingdoms” (Sanguo zhi), states,

“[The people] enjoy singing and dancing, and in every village men and women

gather in groups at night to sing and enjoy themselves.” Moreover, in its

record of the Mahan state it says, “Day and night they like to play, gathering in

groups to sing and dance and drink.” Xu Jing’s (1091-1153) “Illustrated

Record of the Chinese Embassy to the Goryeo Court in the Xuanhe Era”

(Xuanhe fengshi Gaoli tujing) similarly states, “Every night, men and women

gather in groups to sing and dance.”

Perhaps this traditional love for song and dance is why young Koreans are

distinguishing themselves most in the fields of music and sports. K-pop, ballet

and B-boying are all linked with song and dance.

This view is supported by pop music critic Jeong Deok-hyeon. “Young

Koreans are making such notable achievements in music because the Korean

people have a great love of music and dance,” he says. “Broadcast producers

like to say that no program that is connected with music ever fails. The talk

show ‘C’est si bon’ was a hit because music was added to the talk show

formula. The point was not the nostalgia felt by the older generations but the

fact that younger generations showed huge interest in the songs of the past.”

Newsworthy achievements are not limited to popular music. Young Korean

classical musicians are making their mark on the international scene, too. In

2006, pianist Kim Sun-wook, 24, became the first Asian to win the grand prize

in the Leeds International Pianoforte Competition and was also named “Man

of the Year” by the UNESCO. Having never studied overseas, Kim is a wholly

home-bred performer. This means we now have the ability to raise classical

musicians of international caliber at home.

Other noted international performers include violinist Sarah Chang (Korean

name Chang Young-joo), who was named one of the top 20 women leaders of

the future in 2006 by Newsweek, and cellist Chang Han-na, 28, who in the

same year was named one of the top 20 classical music superstars of the future

by the music magazine Gramophone. What is the secret behind the brilliant

performances of young Koreans on Western musical instruments? A team from

the Belgian public broadcaster RTBF recently visited Korea to find an answer

to this question.

Music critic Kim Jin-muk talks about another cultural gene peculiar to

Koreans. People from other countries are often amazed at a performance

technique that Koreans have long been practicing. A saxophone player

produces sound by breathing out. As such the sound is inevitably broken when

the musician breathes in. So when a saxophone player produces uninterrupted

music for more than five minutes, the audience naturally exclaims in wonder.

However, this can be done by any musician who has mastered the art of

“circulatory breathing.” When breathing out, extra air is stored in the cheeks.

When breathing in, this stored air is expired. This technique, considered

astonishing in Western music circles, has long been used in playing the

traditional double-reed oboe called taepyeongso. Of course, this breathing

method is not unique to Koreans, for the Australian aborigines are also known

to use it.

At this point, we should inquire into the power that brings Korea’s unique

cultural DNA to life. Jeon Sang-jin, a sociology professor at Sogang

University, stresses the role of the “manager moms.” Behind the great

achievements of young Koreans are the passionate efforts of their parents.

The representative manager mom, or in this case “manager dad,” is golfer Pak

Se-ri’s father. In many interviews Pak’s father has told stories about his

daughter’s training as a young girl, some of the most memorable being the

stories of practicing until 4 a.m. and of practicing in a graveyard. Some of the

stories of the “golf daddies” behind the Korean women on the LPGA circuit

are downright tear-jerkers. Also famous are the tales of toughness shown by

skater Kim Yu-na’s mother.

Mothers Make Smart Children

Lee Gyeong-ji, 48, a housewife living in Nowon-gu, Seoul, does not stint on

money when it comes to nurturing the talents of her daughter, despite a tight

household budget. Her daughter enjoyed drawing from a young age and was

often praised for her work. She takes lessons at a private art academy and has

been told she had promise. But such lessons take a toll on the family budget.

So Lee now works part-time to support her child in her pursuit of art. Her

dream is to see her daughter accepted to an arts high school. Lee is not a

special case. She is just another of the fervent mothers so common in Korea.

According to the KAOH, a national hagwon association, the number of arts-

related hagwon (private academy or cram school) across the country stood at

22,388 as of 2010. This breaks down to 15,131 for music, 6,245 for art, and

1,012 for dance. In addition, there are about 12,000 taekwondo gyms, and

many other sports hagwon for skating, skiing, swimming and belly dancing

where children are training both body and mind. Indeed, Korea is awash with

schools for the arts and sports. Ministry of Education and Science figures

show that the amount of money poured into such private education in these

fields came to 4 trillion won in 2009, accounting for 18.6 percent of all private

education expenditure.

Some experts say that these hagwon have a positive effect in that they help to

identify talented children at an early age and begin early serious training. Pop

music critic Jeong Deok-hyeon says that the strictness of the Korean system

for rearing future pop stars, which includes communal living and training, is

effective in some ways.

Today many Korean parents are investing a lot of time and money in

discovering and cultivating any talents their children might have. On the other

side of these manager moms is the copycat psychology that is clear in the

aspiration for the so-called “Ko So-young pram,” a high-end pram used by the

TV celebrity Ko So-young. By admiring and imitating someone who shines in

some particular area, one comes to identify with that person. When a celebrity

buys a certain product, many are not satisfied until they have done the same.

This type of thinking can give rise to confidence, as parents start believing that

if Park Chan-ho (baseball star also known as Chan Ho Park) or Pak Se-ri can

do it, there’s no reason their child can’t.

In academic terms, this type of connection with the stars is called a para-social

relationship. But Professor Jeon Sang-jin says, “There is no guarantee that the

‘designer kids’ who grow up under manager moms will be the first to read new

social trends. Their lack of creativity and challenging spirit is a cause for

concern. On the other hand, their confidence spreads the idea that ‘I can do it

too’ and indeed has been the driving force behind Korea’s rapid development.”

When it comes to the international success of many young Koreans, much can

be attributed to the efforts of the big entertainment production companies.

Some experts go so far as to say that the popularity of K-pop overseas is solely

the product of the efforts and know-how of the entertainment giants.

Pioneers in Entertainment Planning and Production

Korea’s entertainment companies have long been dreaming of attacking the

world market. Their internationally oriented strategies come largely from the

foresight of the former singers who now head the leading companies: Lee Soo-

man (SM Entertainment), Park Jin-young (JYP Entertainment) and Yang

Hyun-suk (YG Entertainment). The major case is the singer BoA, who was

groomed from the beginning for the world market. SM Entertainment trained

BoA from a young age as a cosmopolitan girl. Of course, BoA’s international

debut was facilitated by such media platforms as YouTube and social

networking services, but the decisive factor was the company’s foresight and

investment in the future.

It seems the Korean entertainment companies’ know-how in grooming future

stars is quite well established now. Some critics say they could very well

survive just by exporting their systems and expertise. Their method of making

music also sets them apart. By nature, success or failure in the pop music

industry depends on who takes the lead in putting out new cultural products.

The popularity of Korean culture overseas cannot be created through policy

measures or active publicity. It depends completely on the ability of

entertainment companies to create songs and other products.

When it comes to songs, the companies familiarize themselves with what is

popular in the world market, introduces trends from certain countries they are

targeting, and then compose and rearrange music to create songs that are

Korean with a global feel. SM Entertainment may take a song by a European

composer and rearrange the music to create music that is well received back in

the home country. Methods include insertion of a catchy, repetitive chorus, or

putting the chorus at the beginning of the song to create a strong introduction.

To put these songs and boy bands and girl groups (called “idols” in Korea) on

the world market, a well worked out strategy is used. To take on the major

overseas markets, the entertainment companies often get a local partner.

But depending on the region in question, the opposite approach may be

adopted. TVXQ’s (Dong Bang Shin Ki) foray into the Japanese market is a

good example. When this boy band first challenged the Japanese market, it

was considered impossible to make any headway without the help of a local

partner. So, SM Entertainment started from the bottom and carved out a niche

market. By working their way up from the bottom, TVXQ, also known as

Tohoshinki in Japan, paved the way to the mainstream and the big stages.

The question is whether the manager moms and the entertainment companies

would have been successful without Korea’s economic power. It is a fact that

Korea has never enjoyed such a high international profile since the nation was

founded thousands of years ago. In 1964 the country’s trade volume reached

$500 million, ranking 64th in the world. By 2010 the figures had changed to

$890 billion and ninth in the world. Korea’s share of world trade, which came

to 0.3 percent in 1964, rose to 2.6 percent in 2008. In 1961 the per capita GNP

was $80, making Korea one of the poorest countries in the world, but by 2010

Korea had the 15th highest per capita GNP in the world.

While the gap between the rich and the poor remains a problem as always, the

number of Koreans living in absolute poverty is not that high. The increase in

national wealth has naturally led to greater investment in children’s education.

If we look at one more set of figures, only 27.2 percent of high school

graduates went on to university in the 1980s, but 81.9 percent did in 2010

(Korean Education Development Institute 2010 statistics).

A generation ago, Koreans in their 40s and 50s were busy just making a living.

For them success meant studying hard to enter a good university, then getting a

job in one of the conglomerates, which guaranteed a steady wage. Going on

any other road was considered a waste of time. It was seen as a stupid or even

crazy thing to deviate from the standard path.

As of late 2011, Korea’s per capita GDP in terms of purchasing power parity

(PPP) is $31,750, which is higher than the EU’s $31,550. Korea can be called

an advanced country in real terms. As this economic foundation has been laid,

Korean society is now able to turn its eyes to the creation of cultural value.

Ultimately, economic power has led naturally to development of culture and

sports.

The Rise of the Underdog

In the 1960s and 1970s, sports commentators often made this kind of

explanation during a match: “[Our athletes] did not get enough to eat while

they were growing up, so the lack of stamina that begins to show toward the

end of the match has been a perennial cause of defeat.” But these days nobody

makes this sort of comment, though they might talk about the perennial

weakness in basic technique. This, too, is rooted in economic development.

Such being the case, why did young Koreans begin to make such rapid

progress in the 1990s? Experts say that aside from economic reasons, a

number of opportunities have stimulated the cultural DNA in 1987, 1997 and

2002. In 1987, demonstrations on June 10 propelled Korean society on the

path toward democratization. In 1997, with the outbreak of the foreign

exchange crisis, the country was restructured in line with neo-capitalism. Then

in 2002, as mentioned by Professor Jeon Sang-jin above, a change came in the

mindset of Koreans.

Critic Jeong Deok-hyeon stresses the importance of 1987, pointing out that

elements of pop culture began to enter the country in the 1980s and really

began to make a difference after 1987. “I started university in 1987. The

people in my year were completely different from those in the year before in

our way of thinking and we clashed on many occasions. Campus culture

changed completely after the June 10 demonstrations. Here and there students

with dyed hair began to appear,” he says.

This kind of change still underlies Korean society. Elements that had been

repressed before 1987 began to come to the surface one by one, leading to new

phenomena in the field of culture. So the response was explosive when Seo

Taiji and Boys came onto the scene in the early 1990s. Jeong Deok-hyeon

explains their success as “eruption of the desire to break away from the

established culture and create something new.” Such change, however, did not

come from the generation who led the 1987 democratization movement but

from those who grew up in a society changed by the movement.

In regard to 1997, Professor Jeon Sang-jin focuses on the idea of performance.

With the outbreak of the financial crisis, Koreans also began to break away

from the regional ties, school ties and emphasis on seniority that had ruled

their society. In the fields of sports and the arts this created an atmosphere

where individual talents could be discovered and expressed much more freely

than before. The atmosphere of free competition gave rise to the confidence

that anyone could achieve something if he or she tried hard enough.

The national soccer team’s advance to the semifinals of the 2002 World Cup

was perhaps the single occasion that did the most to implant a sense of self-

esteem in the hearts of Koreans. It seemed to spread the belief that Koreans

were as good as anyone else. Or rather, in the psychological sense, it spread

the idea that Koreans were better than others.

In analyzing the effects of 2002 on Korean society, Professor Jeon Sang-jin

says, “There were several incidents in 2002 that were important turning points

in our society. The national team’s entry into the semifinals worked to plant

great hope in people’s hearts. The rise of the underdog, which was so much a

factor of Park Chan-ho and Pak Se-ri’s success, took on a whole new level in

2002. People began to shed the sense of inferiority that there was an invisible

wall that could not be surpassed. They began to realize that human beings

could surmount any environmental conditions with self-determination. In that

process, unconsciously we began to set higher standards for everything.”

While passing through a number of turning points, numerous changes came in

the thinking and behavior of the young generation. Children who saw the

national team’s success in the World Cup started to become more visible in

society, and showed distinctly different traits to preceding generations. Today,

young Koreans appear to be free and fearless, and most of all have strong

desire to express themselves. In addition, they don’t take much notice of what

others think of them. This is reflected in their familiarity with cameras and

other media. Rather than just standing in front of the camera, they get behind

the lens, do their own editing and post their own productions online. This kind

of behavior leads directly to creative action.

“Today’s young Koreans grew up in a completely new environment and have

characteristics that older Koreans don’t have. They no longer dream only of

being lawyers and doctors,” says Lee O-young. “While their parents still

hesitate in the midst of changing trends, they do a full 360-degree circle in

response. In other words, society has changed to allow 360 people to all come

in first place. This means Korean society has moved on from the age of

industrialization and democratization with emphasis on economic capital to

the age of life and culture with an emphasis on cultural capital.”

Lee says that an individual’s values and outlook on the world are formed

during their youth. Sociologists say the experiences of youth become an

inherent part of a person’s life and are manifested in concrete ways. So, it is

highly likely that the experiences of those in their 40s and 50s, no matter how

tough, may not be a part of their lives in the same way. As such when they hear

about the hallyu craze overseas they tend to be skeptical at first.

When older Koreans see foreign youths on television going wild over Korean

pop songs, they can’t help being doubtful, saying “It can’t be true.” Those now

in their 40s and 50s spent their youth memorizing foreign pop songs as if they

were holy words. They are still hesitant to look at themselves properly.

But it is likely that young people who witnessed the soccer team’s victories in

their adolescence do not think of themselves as falling behind in comparison to

others. Today’s young generation, free from ideological self-censorship, thirst

for freedom of expression and are uninhibited in doing so, demonstrating their

skills and talents.

The pop culture products created in Korea today are quickly spread around the

world thanks to information technology infrastructure. YouTube and SNS play

a particularly important role. Within the first 10 days of release, the music

video for “The Boys” by Girls’ Generation had racked up 15 million clicks for

both the Korean and English versions. By the same token, Koreans can quickly

access music from all over the world. This is a new characteristic of a

generation that became familiar with the Internet at an early age, Korea being

a country with world leading IT infrastructure.

Communication and Convergence through the Internet

Criticism and feedback of artists take place freely online. Celebrities can

communicate with their fans in real-time, and provide information about their

daily activities from little everyday details to official schedules. SNS also is a

platform for setting standards in today’s pop culture in certain ways. SNS can

be attributed to giving the name “K-pop” to music previously known simply as

“Korean songs.” Of course, not just Korean music but music from all over the

world can be found online. But the impressive dance movements and simple,

catchy lyrics of K-pop have grabbed the attention of worldwide Internet

surfers looking for something new.

This phenomenon is still ongoing. With young Korean stars gaining popularity

over the world, the world is now turning its eyes to Korea. On August 26, the

famous Billboard music chart announced a separate chart for K-pop in

recognition of the potential of the genre. It is the second such separate

Billboard chart for Asian music after the J-pop chart.

On November 9, the annual K-pop Masters Day to take place every November

25 was proclaimed in Las Vegas. Over the following two days, the Billboard

K-pop Masters concert was held at MGM Grand Garden.

What about K-pop moves people? Jeong Deok-hyeon pinpoints the idea of

“convergence.” In other words, he argues, Koreans have the ability to take

different elements from outside and create something new from them. For

example, dance from Japan and melodies from Europe are mixed with a

Korean touch to create something new.

“We are creating the thing that today’s young generation wants,” Jeong says.

“In this respect, our ability to fuse elements comes to the fore. Korean culture

is often described as the ‘bibimbap culture’ [a reference to the way all sorts of

ingredients are mixed together with rice in the dish called bibimbap]. K-pop is

very dynamic and making use of group dance movements; it takes a sort of

middle ground in musical terms. It seems to be a mixture of American,

Japanese and European music. The people who make the songs form a global

team. The B-boys don’t just limit themselves to B-boying. They have made

efforts to combine traditional music, specifically the zither called gayageum,

as well as ballet. Such fusion efforts are seen by other countries as something

very new.”

Kim Jae-u, secretary-general of the Korea B-boy Association, reinforces the

importance of fusion. “The strength of Korean B-boys is the expression of

individual technique and use of creative movements. Our moves, matched to

the flow of the music, have a special dynamism,” Kim says. “The creation of a

B-boy musical or efforts to combine B-boying with other fields, something not

found in other countries, may be rooted in the environment in which we grew

up. Our B-boy teams work 10 hours a day to make the moves a part of

themselves and exploit their strong points to the full.”

This linking of different genres has always existed in traditional Korean

culture such as pansori or the song and dance of wandering entertainers.

Tightrope walking, for example, combines acrobatics with song and drama. It

can be said that young Koreans have a latent ability to mix these elements and

create a new form of entertainment.

In their latest single “The Boys,” Girls’ Generation break away from their

girlish melodies and repetitive choruses to demonstrate a more sophisticated

sound and deliver a strong message. They have jettisoned the image of

“national little sisters” they have enjoyed so far. This attempt at change has

been successful, with the song topping all online charts upon release. The

music video even ranked No. 3 on the world YouTube chart. The girl group

has in effect publicly set a new direction for themselves. What will the future

of K-pop bring? What is needed to sustain the popularity of K-pop?

To Sustain K-pop

Experts agree that the most important thing now is diversity. Rather than

concentration in a few big entertainment companies, K-pop needs to develop

on a wider foundation. In addition, the trend has been to import source music

and combine it with Korean elements but this method has its limitations. There

is no telling when the world audience will grow tired of this sound. As such,

diverse kinds of music must be created at home. Some people argue that K-

pop needs to incorporate uniquely Korean style sentiment and analog

elements.

“K-pop right now is very good. But now the time has come to add strong

Korean sentiment,” says pop music critic Kim Jin-muk. “In the midst of its

popularity, it is necessary to show something different. One of those elements

is the idea of jeong [a term that encompasses a wide variety of emotions,

including love and affection]. A common thread in Korean songs is the jeong

that ties families together, which is hard to find in Western music. Such

sentiment has to be added to the music, from the lyrics to the melodies. It is

worth remembering that when the Beatles added Indian elements to their

music after visiting India, Indian music became a popular form of world

music.”

In other words, the argument is that K-pop must be seen as Korean pop if its

popularity is to be sustained. Kim suggested jeong as just one element that

would be useful; there are, of course, many more.

A more intuitive view also exists: There is no need for any specifically defined

element in the world pop music market. The theory is that any music that

grasps the mood of the world market and takes the lead in responding to it will

be accepted around the world regardless of style or country of origin.

Proponents of this view argue that the important thing is to quickly change

strategies according to need and take the lead in creating new cultural

products. The question is: Which road should K-pop take?

[December 2011]



Three Kings of K-Pop Riding the Crest of the Korean Wave

Baek Seung-a Staff Reporter The Monthly JoongAng

“London is going K-pop crazy,” declared an article that appeared recently on

the front page of a British newspaper. K-pop (short for Korean pop music) has

enchanted music lovers not only in the United Kingdom, but in other European

countries, including France and Germany, as well as in Lain American

countries and Mexico. What is it about K-pop that has created such a fad? In

Japan, K-pop singers are acclaimed as “artists evolved from pop idols.” The

popularity of K-pop is largely attributed to the competency of Korean

entertainment companies in casting and training singers. Among others, SM,

JYP and YG entertainment companies have produced outstanding K-pop

artists, who have been leading the surge of the Korean Wave (hallyu).

The K-Pop Troika

“Ring ding dong, ring ding dong, ring diggi diggi, ring ding dong,” a rhythmic

melody with onomatopoeic words resonated in the Red Square at the heart of

Moscow in Russia. In no time, more than 200 young Russians gathered at the

center of the square. As if they had rehearsed it, the crowd started to form

orderly lines. There was something uncanny about what was happening.

MBC’s special program “K-Pop Road Show,” aired last September, broadcast

a flash mob in Russia led by the Korean boy band Shinee. A flash mob refers

to a sort of event, or act, performed by a random group of people who

assemble suddenly in a public place. It was a rare sight to see a large crowd

performing to a song by a foreign band in, of all places, the Red Square, the

center of power and stage for numerous historical events in Russia for

hundreds of years. Awed by the sight, Shinee’s members wept. It was an

occasion that testified to K-pop’s popularity spreading beyond Asia and

reaching out to Europe.

The popularity is not just a short-lived fad. Already recognized as an original

music genre, K-pop has captivated the minds of many young people around

the world. There are more than 10 boy bands and girl groups from Korea who

have gained international popularity, including Girls’ Generation, Super Junior,

Shinee, Wonder Girls, 2PM, 2NE1, Big Bang, and Kara.

International media are also keen to report the K-pop craze. Some European

press, including the BBC, featured articles on K-pop’s success in Europe, with

a special focus on the strategic training and management of young talents by

Korean entertainment agencies. One of the reports analyzed that K-pop’s

global popularity is the outcome of the meticulous planning by management

agencies.

As many such analyses point out, the “New Korean Wave” originating from

K-pop music must be the work of three major entertainment companies: SM,

JYP and YG, headed by Lee Soo-man, Park Jin-young and Yang Hyun-suk,

respectively. As the “troika” of the K-pop scene, each of the three companies

has produced a number of widely popular girl groups and boy bands. Largest

in company size and equipped with excellent infrastructure for music

production, each of these companies has pursued an original musical style that

matches its leader’s personal characteristics and musical preference.

These entertainment companies have taken the lead in the expansion of the

Korean Wave just like the three kingdoms in the Chinese historical epic

“Romance of the Three Kingdoms.” Indeed, each company resembles one of

the Chinese kingdoms — Wei, Shu, Wu.

SM Entertainment: Wei Dynasty with Supreme Military Force and

Strategies

On September 23, 2011, SM Town Live was held at Madison Square Garden

in New York City. The concert was highly acclaimed by the local media,

including the New York Times, which reported: “···a sold-out showcase···for

several of its [SM’s] acts, any one of which any American reality-TV talent

show or major-label A&R department worth its salt would be thrilled to have

discovered···American teen-pop at its peak has never been this productive. K-

pop is an environment of relentless newness, both in participants and in style.”

The nearly four-hour concert showed that SM Entertainment’s power, which

had led K-pop’s reign in Europe, was also effective in the United States. More

than 15,000 fans came from all over the United States, and some of them sang

along the Korean songs perfectly and even shouted Korean words to cheer up

the performers, who included Girls’ Generation, Super Junior, TVXQ, Shinee,

and f(x).

SM is the “nucleus” of the K-pop fever. The company can be likened to the

Wei Dynasty in the “Romance of the Three Kingdoms,” which had the biggest

military with a million troops out of a population of ten million. Meanwhile,

SM’s CEO Lee Soo-man, 60, is reminiscent of Wei’s warlord Cao Cao, who

brought peace to the dynasty in turbulent times by effectively recruiting talent.

Just like Wei, which surpassed the other two kingdoms in military and

diplomatic strategies, SM has beaten both JYP and YG in recruiting

performers and putting them on the world stage.

First of all, Lee has built an unrivaled career in training teenage idols since the

late 1990s, when he produced his foundational bands H.O.T. and S.E.S. SM

creates pop stars with a demanding training program that it created. It is said

that singers under the contract with SM spend an average of five years as a

trainee. Among members of Girls’ Generation, for example, Sooyoung, Jessica

and Hyoyeon trained for seven years before going on stage.

SM has hosted open auditions every Saturday to recruit new trainees. For

global auditions, which are held on a regular basis in the United States, China,

Thailand and other countries, the CEO himself participates in the jury. The “K-

Pop Global Audition,” which was held in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on July 11,

2011, attracted about 1,600 participants, including those from its neighboring

Russia and Kyrgyzstan.

Young trainees recruited through auditions receive individually tailored

training in singing, dancing and acting along with Japanese and Chinese

language lessons. The company holds regular internal showcases to keep track

of all the trainees’ progress. Apart from the training regime in the company, the

trainees are also required to keep their academic grades above a specified level

to stay in the company. Only those who persevere through all the training

process have an opportunity to sing professionally. Currently, SM is training

30 singer aspirants, who are making relentless efforts to achieve their dreams.

SM has a tendency to select good-looking boys and girls who can live up to

the typical image of teenage idols. Good looks are preferred to individuality at

the time of recruitment, and then selected trainees are organized into a group

in a way that each member’s different role contributes to its collective

diversity. To take Girls’ Generations as an example, Yoona’s exquisite looks

provide an attractive front to the group; Taeyeon’s superb singing skills

enhances the group’s musical quality; Seohyun’s naïve and innocent image as

the youngest member adds girlish charms.

However, one should not mistake SM’s singers for just nice-looking boys and

girls who cannot truly sing. Despite its emphasis on image, SM also strives for

musical perfection. Pop music critic Lee Mun-won states, “In fact, SM’s

singers have excellent singing skills,” adding, “TVXQ can sing in various

genres, including hip-hop, ballad and even classical music, and they are no

less than the veteran singers in the TV program ‘I Am a Singer.’”

SM is also unrivaled by its competitors in developing international markets.

Since the late 1990s, when Korean singers were hardly known outside the

country, SM introduced S.E.S. in Japan, followed by BoA and TVXQ. In 2001,

the company established a Japanese affiliate, SM Japan, to help make further

inroads. SM also has sought to increase the publicity of its singers by

collaborating with AVEX Entertainment, the well-known Japanese

management company to which singer Amuro Namie belongs. Similarly, SM

established SM USA in 2008, and then SM-True in Thailand in August 2011,

in collaboration with True, a local mobile carrier.

SM tends to make the most of internationally renowned songwriters, which is

one of the company’s important tactics to advance into international markets.

For the last few years, SM has commissioned European songwriters from

Norway, Denmark and others to write melodies for its songs. Many of Girls’

Generation’s hit songs, such as “Tell Me Your Wish (Genie),” “Run Devil

Run,” “Hoot,” are the works of European songwriters. “Tell Me Your Wish”

was written by Design Music, a songwriter group, and “Run Devil Run” is the

work of Alex James, a British songwriter.

Other songs written by foreign songwriters include “Juliet” by Shinee, “Hot

Summer” by f(x), “Hurricane Venus” by BoA, and “Miracle U” by Super

Junior.

Critic Lee Mun-won says that “Tell Me Your Wish” by Girls’ Generation

employs melodies of European trance music (a genre of electronic dance

music characterized by a succession of repetitive beats) and that the song is

“even more sophisticated than authentic Euro-pop.” He adds, “SM has a

strategy to get main melodies from European songwriters and then recompose

and arrange them into a final work, which seems to be working pretty well in

the European market.”

“The Boys,” the chart topping title song from Girls’ Generations’ third album,

was written by Teddy Riley, who is well-known as the late Michael Jackson’s

producer. This seems to be a strategic shift from European styles that SM

pursued for a while to the more popular American style. This album will be

distributed worldwide through Interscope Records, an American record label

owned by Universal Music Group.

However, SM denies any imminent plan to make an inroad into the American

market. It will first promote the album in Korea and other Asian countries

before introducing it to the American stage. Pop music critic Jeong Deok-

hyeon observes, “It is insightful of SM to begin with a ‘glocal’ strategy to

achieve its eventual goal of globalizing its music,” adding, “In terms of both

talent training skills and marketing strategies, SM is a Goliath of Korea’s

entertainment industry, which outperforms its competitors by a wide margin.”

JYP Entertainment: Shu Dynasty under Complete One-Man

Control

“When Park Jin-young goes, so does JYP,” many people in the industry say

half-jokingly. Park, 40, who is JYP’s CEO, producer and songwriter,

participates in all the steps of producing singers and their albums. Often

dubbed the “Park Jin-young Squad,” JYP is under Park’s complete control

from talent recruiting to album producing, choreography and styling.

To take an example, Wonder Girls’ “Tell Me,” with its disco melodies, enjoyed

sweeping popularity in Korea four years ago. Park oversaw the entire process

of releasing the song, from the writing of its lyrics and melodies to the

producing of the song and the creating of choreography. There is a famous

episode concerning its retro-style choreography, which was widely loved and

mimicked by Koreans, including children and even soldiers. Park, who was in

the United States to produce an album at the time, wanted to contribute his

ideas to the song’s choreography, so he sent a video clip of himself performing

an impromptu dance. As much as the performance of Wonder Girls was

applauded on stage, the video clip of Park in short pants and T-shirts recording

the Tell Me dance in his room was also extensively viewed on the Internet.

This is a typical example that shows how tight a grip Park has on the operation

of JYP.

This episode leads one to liken Park to Zhuge Kong Ming, chancellor of the

Shu Dynasty, who tried to take control of every aspect of state affairs,

including military and diplomacy. The chancellor who single-mindedly

pursued his goal of conquering the north for seven years also resembles the

CEO of JYP, whose ambition to promote his artists internationally has focused

on America.

With an exception of 2PM and 2AM, whose singles were released in Japan,

JYP has had little interest in the Japanese market unlike other Korean

entertainment companies. JYP’s only overseas target has been the United

States, where it relocated Wonder Girls in 2009 at the peak of the group’s

popularity in Korea.

Typically, Korean entertainers first go to China, Japan or other Asian countries

before advancing into the United States, but Wonder Girls shortened the

process and directly went to the United States. The result seemed to be

successful for some time. The group’s single “Nobody” was listed on U.S.

Billboard’s singles chart in the first year, and they had a concert tour around

the United States with Jonas Brothers.

All in all, however, what Wonder Girls accomplished in the United States does

not seem to be as great as has been publicized. As Teddy Riley openly

criticized the group by saying, “Wonder Girls are flops in America,” it may be

a little too early to conclude their musical ventures in the United States were

“successful.” Jeong Deok-hyeon pointed out that JYP should have employed

“glocal” rather than “global” strategies at the beginning, but then said, “To

sum up, it is JYP’s strategy to enhance the status of their singers in Korea by

publicizing their achievements in the United States.”

JYP produces music close to the African-American retro music style of the

1970s. Its music is characterized by suggestive lyrics with a feminist touch,

which also corresponds with the overall styles of JYP singers.

JYP’s singers are noted for their individuality rather than typical good looks.

When recruiting new singers, the company puts originality ahead of handsome

looks. However, that does not mean the company has a clear standard of

evaluating originality. As JYP’s general tendency goes, the selection is largely

dependent on the CEO’s intuition.

JYP also holds regular open auditions on the first and third Sundays every

month. It has a separate team that manages all the recruiting and training.

Trainees undergo intensive training for at least two years. The fact that Jo

Kwon (2PM) and Sunye (Wonder Girls) spent eight years before they debuted

in their respective groups shows how long and hard JYP’s preparations can be

for aspiring singers.

On November 7, 2011, Wonder Girls released their second album one and a

half years after their first, and Park wrote its title song “Be My Baby.” With

the participation of Beyonce’s choreographer Jonte and Katy Perry’s stylist

Johnny Wujek, the album attracted attention even before its release. Besides,

the TV movie “Wonder Girls at the Apollo” produced by Nick Cannon,

American pop singer Mariah Carey’s husband, will be on air in the United

States early next year. With the renewed effort to promote Wonder Girls, JYP’s

project to open up the American market is ongoing.

YG Entertainment: Wu Dynasty Seeking its Own Way

From Big Mama and Gummy to 2NE1 and Big Bang, YG Entertainment’s

singers are best known for their singing skills and stage presence. The

company’s CEO is Yang Hyun-suk, 42, a former member of the now defunct

Seo Taeji and Boys, which introduced hip-hop music to Korea. YG, which

stands for Yang Goon, the CEO’s nickname, was renamed from Hyun

Planning, established in 1996 after the Seo Taeji and Boys was disbanded.

Since then, Yang has trained numerous young performers devoted largely to

hip-hop.

A form of musical subculture that originated in minority communities in New

York City in the 1970s, hip-hop is characterized by free styles and spontaneity

and is often accompanied by rapping and break dance. Recently, a new form of

hip-hop music added with acoustic sound has also been attempted. Just like the

music it pursues, YG’s overall style is freewheeling and unrestrained. It is

hardly influenced by the dominant musical trends or temporary fads in the

industry, but sticks to its own styles.

In that sense, YG is reminiscent of the Wu Dynasty, which differed from Wei

and Shu by stepping out of their competition to be acknowledged as the

legitimate successor of the preceding Han Dynasty and creating its own

culture based on its fertile land and abundant resources. Unlike Wei and Shu,

Wu turned its attention to the vast, undeveloped land in the south, which is

also similar to YG’s strategies in the music industry.

YG feels that people equate glamorous looks with mediocre talent, and is

using it to its own advantage. In general, the company does not place a high

premium on nice looks when recruiting. So much so that some people say with

irony that homely looks are a prerequisite to joining YG. By eschewing the

typical emphasis on physical appearance, YG gets audiences to pay more

attention to musical talent. A good example is 2NE1, considered to be the most

talented girl group in Korea; it is enjoying wider popularity among women.

YG does not hold regular auditions, but its recruiting department accepts demo

tapes at any time from wannabes. Recently, the company opened a website to

accommodate more applicants. Usually, the first round of assessment takes

about 2-5 weeks. The chosen candidates then go through an audition and

camera test. The final hurdle is an interview. Currently, the company has 32

trainees, including Kang Seung-yun, 18, and Kim Eun-bi, 19. Both were Top

11 contestants in the TV contest program “Superstar K-2” in 2010.

YG has lagged behind SM and JYP in promoting their artists overseas. Or, it

would be more correct to say that YG has put more emphasis on the domestic

market. Jeong Deok-hyeon notes, “YG tends to keep its own pace rather than

follow trends, all the while expanding its realms spontaneously.” For the last

few years, however, YG has concentrated its efforts on expanding Japanese

audiences. In 2009, Big Bang, a male hip-hop quintet, was introduced in

Japan, and the company established YGEX there in collaboration with AVEX,

the greatest Japanese entertainment management company. With YG’s

foothold established, 2NE1 also advanced into the Japanese market in

September this year.

The two YG bands have been well received by Japanese music fans. Big

Bang’s first single ranked third in Japan’s prestigious Oricon weekly charts

and the group’s single album has sold more than 30,000 copies. Similarly,

2NE1’s mini album made its way up to the top of Oricon charts in only two

days. Given that hip-hop is not as widely popular in Japan as in Korea, the

success of the two groups in Japan is quite significant.

YG’s approach in Japan was also different from the two other companies.

While most Korean singers start their promotion in Japan by releasing one or

two singles, 2NE1’s mini album contained five songs. Naturally, for a new

band whose name is little known to the public an album would be expected to

be a harder sell than cheaper singles. Yet, YG’s unconventional approach

proved successful.

“YG seems to have taken a different strategy to promote its hip-hop music, a

non-mainstream genre in Japan, while avoiding a direct comparison with other

Korean groups like Girls’ Generation and Kara, who had already been highly

successful in Japan,” said critic Lee Mun-won. Whether in Korea or in Japan,

YG has refused to take a proven path and turned its attention to a niche market

to pursue its own musical style.

Just like the historical three kingdoms, SM, JYP and YG have different styles,

both in terms of their music and their artists, and have taken different

strategies to promote them. However, they have one thing in common: All of

them have made the greatest contribution to the prosperity of K-pop and will

lead its further development.

Some international media criticize that their methods of planning and

manufacturing teenage entertainers into perfect merchandise are inhuman.

With the controversy aside, one thing is certain: Without their innovative

training systems and strategic promotions K-pop would not exist today. And

they will still have a lot to do to bring more variety and vitality to Korean pop

music.

[December 2011]



- Priest-Doctor Suffers ‘Divine Depression’ after Lifetime Service for the Needy

Priest-Doctor Suffers ‘Divine Depression’ after Lifetime Service

for the Needy

Kim Ji-hyeon Staff Reporter The Dong-a Ilbo

The elderly priest slowly adjusted his robe for a while before sitting down for

an interview with a reporter who was young enough to be his granddaughter.

Getting his breath back, he finally started to speak. “Well, you are curious why

on earth a priest has depression. I understand your bewilderment because a

priest is supposed to serve God in spiritual fulfillment,” he said. “I’ve been

under tremendous financial pressure all my life. My doctor said this is the

reason I have the blues.”

Father Kim Joong-ho, 72, thus began to tell his life story, which he has rarely

shared with others.

Elite Medical Student Chooses Priesthood

The symptoms surfaced rather abruptly in 2008, when he was looking forward

to turning 70. Loss of appetite and insomnia came over the ageing priest. He

started to avoid meeting people around the Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, where

he resided and worked. To stay away from people, he often spent afternoons in

his younger sister’s house, where he sat in silence for hours, lost in thought.

His sister Kim Nam-hee, 62, instantly knew that there was something wrong

with her priest brother and urged him to have a medical checkup and seek

professional help. He refused. “I am a priest and this difficult time that I am

going through may also be a part of God’s intention,” he said. However, Father

Kim, himself a medical doctor, was well aware of the state of his mental

health: he was displaying typical symptoms of depression and severe stress.

He could not recover easily. After spending over two years without seeking

professional help, he had reached a stage where he could no longer delay his

visit to a doctor. A series of counseling sessions revealed that the priest was in

extreme exhaustion as a result of putting himself into enormous financial

stress all his life, saving money and seeking donations.

The pecuniary compulsion was not on his behalf. In fact he was the second son

of a wealthy family in Anguk-dong, central Seoul. Medical professions were

common in his family. Father Kim’s father was a renowned surgeon and

professor at Korea University’s College of Medicine. All his uncles were also

medical doctors. His grandfather’s dream was to establish a general hospital

staffed by all the doctors in his family. To do so he purchased a building site of

some 1,600 square meters.

Carrying on their family profession, Father Kim and his elder brother studied

medicine at Seoul National University and his younger brother at Korea

University. The surgeon father and his three medical student sons would have

late suppers at night, discussing hospital affairs and pathological cases. The

proud father would dream of founding a family medical center with his sons.

The second son, however, shattered his dream when he announced he was

dropping out of school. “I’ll quit. I must become a priest,” he said in 1962, his

fourth year of medical studies.

He had been a good altar boy. While only an elementary school pupil, he

would get up at 6 a.m. every day to help the parish priest celebrate mass. He

liked to share his possessions with his poorer school friends. When his mother

allotted sweets and bonbons to him and his four siblings, he would not eat his

share but kept it inside a desk drawer. The next day he would bring a friend

from school to his house to eat the treats together. His younger siblings teased

him that he would only get along with poor children.

Young Doctor in Priestly Attire

The late Father Lee Gyeong-jae took notice of the faithful boy while Kim was

attending the prestigious Kyunggi High School. A lifetime mentor to him,

Father Lee was the first president of St. Lazarus Village, a Catholic charity-

based community designed to help out leprous patients, in Uiwang, Gyeonggi

Province. “Your family has many medical doctors to cure physical illnesses. I

hope you become a priest who gives consolation to the soul,” he would say to

Kim still in his teens.

Father Lee’s suggestion did not leave Kim’s mind even after he enrolled at the

Seoul National University’s College of Medicine. After a few years in medical

studies, Kim decided to become a priest. He was certain that Father Lee’s

words were not only a piece of kind advice: It was a divine order delivered to

Kim through the senior priest. Kim’s father was greatly disappointed and

turned resentful of his son’s decision. Even though he had a deep faith to

become the first chairman of the Korea Catholic Doctors’ Association, he

stopped going to church for several years out of distress and frustration.

That spring Kim entered Catholic University. In his second year at the

seminary, while learning Latin and liturgy, Seoul National University notified

that he would be permanently dropped from the school unless he re-enrolled

that year. He believed he had already withdrawn from the school. However, his

father had asked the school to allow his son a leave of absence for two years.

The door for a successful medical career still remained open for Kim, testing

his commitment to priesthood.

The principal of the seminary summoned him to his office and said, “They say

medical students are highly popular among young women. Promise that you

will come back to the seminary after your medical study. Once you are back

you should serve the poor with your medical skills.”

Two years later, in August 1966, Kim graduated from medical school and

returned to the seminary as he had promised. He was ordained a priest in 1973

at age 34. He officially embarked on serving the deprived as a priest-doctor.

Treading a Thorny Path

In the summer of 1975 when he was serving as resident priest at Sungshin

High School, he made his first visit to the Nanji Island area, a landfill and

dumping ground in the metropolitan Seoul, accepting a request from a nun

who was taking care of poverty-stricken residents of the area. Having grown

up in a wealthy family, it was the first time he saw severe poverty and people

suffering from malnutrition and poverty-related illnesses. The stench of

garbage was pervasive throughout the neighborhood populated by some 4,000

people.

To keep his promise to use his medical skills for the poor, he began a weekly

free medical clinic. The local residents, first mistrustful of the visiting young

doctor-priest, began looking forward to his presence on Sunday afternoons,

when the clinic operated for three hours. Patients from other slum areas in

Seoul such as Siheung-dong and Sillim-dong also clamored to the free clinic at

Nanjido. To cope with the surging number of patients, Father Kim asked his

SNU alumni doctor friends and Catholic University-affiliated doctors to help.

They set up monthly shift schedules for volunteer service. He urged them to

learn humbleness from their patients rather than taking pride in offering them

free medical service.

Father Kim never missed his Sunday routine until 1987, when he was on a

series of long-haul flights to Quito, the capital of Ecuador, via New York and

Miami. He was on a two-week leave from the school to visit a small

Ecuadorian coastal town named Palmar, which took him another eight-hour

bus travel from Quito.

In Palmar, he met patients who had never seen a doctor. They were suffering

from diverse illnesses including flu, renal diseases and cancer. Amid the

tropical heat of 40 degrees Celsius, Father Kim saw patients who cherished a

Tylenol painkiller tablet as if it were a cure-all. He saw malnourished infants

born to mothers lacking basic food. The two weeks spent in Palmar gave him a

firm belief in his mission.

Upon returning to Korea, he decided to spend all his money on building free

clinics in underprivileged communities. He had saved his salary from working

as a professor at Catholic University and the head of the Catholic Institute of

Bioethics. The Catholic Education Foundation also joined in his efforts by

supporting his initiative, named “International Volunteer Medical Service.”

The next year he led a group of doctors to Ecuador and examined 2,705

patients. They also travelled to provide medical care to needy people in Kenya

between 1992 and 1995, and Mongolia between 1997 and 2002. During the

1999 East Timorese crisis the Catholic doctors’ group took care of Muslim

patients in the conflict-ridden Southeast Asian country under emergency

instructions of Stephen Cardinal Kim Sou-hwan. Clad as a Catholic priest,

Kim took care of 649 Muslim patients there. The urgent need to save lives

overrode any inter-religious tensions.

Father Kim’s work in some of the world’s most impoverished regions required

him to risk his own life. Bitten by malaria-carrying mosquitoes during an

extended stay in Kenya in 1992, the symptoms did not become full blown until

after he came back to Korea. Since travels between Korea and Africa were not

common at the time, anti-malaria treatment was non-existent in Korea. Had

the Catholic Education Foundation failed to secure medicine from the United

Kingdom within a week, he could have lost his life to malaria.

Father Kim’s medical service trips ended in 2007 with his retirement. Through

his lifetime project over some 35 years he examined more than 35,000 patients

around the world. His junior fellow doctors took over his mission, continuing

to offer free medical service. Asked what was the most challenging part of his

work, he said, “Above all else, money problems.” It takes at least $45,000 for

an eight-member medical team to run a free dispensary abroad for two weeks.

Transportation to remote villages and pharmaceutical bills to cover are

especially costly.

Insufficient funding was a chronic headache to Father Kim. On Sundays he

would visit different parishes to solicit donations from congregations. He

continued to ask for financial help from St. Mary’s hospitals, Catholic

University hospitals, and assorted medical societies. He also regularly called

on his rich alumni doctors. He took great pains to be seen as neither a beggar

nor a condescending preacher but the stress and pressure accumulated,

eventually resulting in depression. “I just worked and worked without

realizing that I was ageing. I think I pushed myself too hard.”

As he recovers, Father Kim wishes to resume his work by returning to

Colombia next spring. Several tens of thousands of dollars are needed for that.

He believes small donations can create possibilities to deliver medicine and

antibiotic injections to the world’s poorest people for the first time in their

lives. It was to increase public awareness of the importance of such efforts that

he accepted this reporter’s request for an interview.

Epilogue

Listening to Father Kim talk about his self-sacrificing service for the

underprivileged in remote countries, I was reminded of another Korean

Catholic priest, Father Lee Tae-suk, who passed away from cancer last year at

age 47. Father Lee was a graduate from Gwangju Catholic University and Inje

University’s College of Medicine. He spent his priesthood in the Southern

Sudanese village of Tonj, offering medical help to people there. His life story

became posthumously known to the Korean public through a touching

documentary film titled “Don’t Cry for Me, Sudan.”

Regarding Father Lee, Father Kim’s sister Kim Nam-hee said, “He left for

Heaven too soon. I guess God has still many things to be done through my

brother. God probably allowed some illness to him to give him a short break.”

Family Tradition of Philanthropy Father Kim’s family has demonstrated a strong tradition of giving back to society and serving the needy. His father, Professor Kim Woong-kyu, who passed away in 1998, taught at Korea University and headed Catholic doctors’ associations. He did not receive money from poor patients at his surgical clinic at Anguk-dong, saying, “Pay me when you can.” His elder brother Myung-ho, 77, also graduated Seoul National University and volunteered to join a government-organized medical team dispatched to Africa in 1978. He first intended to stay in Uganda for a few years and come back but he ended up working for people in different African countries, including Kenya, Malawi and Lesotho, for 24 years. In a recent parallel interview with the Dong-a Ilbo, he said, “Saving people’s lives through surgeries gave me the greatest satisfaction and reward as a doctor.” The youngest of the five siblings, Nam-hee, 62, saves Father Kim’s salaries and royalties on his books to raise a scholarship fund that will be donated to Catholic University after he passes away. The scholarship will realize wishes to provide education to medical students from underprivileged families so they would save the lives of needy people. The fourth son, Ja-ho, 66, is chairman of Gansam Architects & Partners. In the 1990s, he designed the Jeon Jin Sang Medical and Welfare Center – a request by Father Kim – and donated an architectural design for a children’s rehabilitation facility of the Purme Foundation. The third son, Bu-ho, 69, graduated from Korea University’s College of Medicine and currently resides in the United States.

[December 17, 2011] www.koreafocus.or.kr

- Shin Kyung-sook’s Seven Perspectives Returned Homeward

- ‘Cells of the City’: Inviting Alleys and Small Buildings

Shin Kyung-sook’s Seven Perspectives Returned Homeward

Eo Su-ung Staff Reporter The Chosun Ilbo

“Unknown Women”

By Shin Kyung-sook, Munhak Dongne (Literary Community) Publishing

Co., 283 pages, 12,000 won

For Shin Kyung-sook to be the first author mentioned as we survey the books

on Korean literature in 2011 seems quite natural. “Please Look After Mom”

met with warm responses from readers in 31 countries. Yet, if we are to

account for the author’s successful 2011 we must consider another of her

works. That is “Unknown Women,” a collection of seven short stories and the

first such anthology by Shin in eight years.

The author, who communicated so well with readers abroad through “Mom,”

sat back down to her desk in Korea to write warmly of the subtleties

surrounding home. Interestingly, the author says she has written these short

fictions when she wanted to write, and to the extent she wished, with no

inhibitions. One of the seven pieces, “Yard with a Flowerpot,” was composed

in 140 pages of 200-character writing paper, and another, “After Dark,” on

merely 100.

Immersion in longer works had prevented the shorter from developing. For

nearly 10 years now, Shin has concentrated on longer works, while putting

aside requests for shorter works from literary publishers. “Yi Jin,” “Please

Look After Mom” and “From Somewhere Afar the Phone Keeps Ringing for

Me” are her resultant works. In that regard, these seven works are dear to Shin.

She confessed that “when I felt hurt by issues or relationships I would silently

sit down at my desk to write” and “I did not write these for them to be read by

others but for me to be able to move forward.”

Novellas ventured as therapy for the author have now begun to treat reader’s

scars. These seven stories deal with the petty untidinesses in our everyday

lives. Yet the tone projected by Shin touches the hard shell of those readers

who have decided to never again open their hearts, digging in at just the right

angle to source magical instants of realization.

Read the main title work “Unknown Women” first, for a taste of these

moments, which occur in every piece. The magical moment in that work

begins with a note. The note, which begins with the discourse of cold orders to

do housework aimed at a household helper and that helper’s dutiful response,

changes to a confession of private sentiment, a more personal confession than

possible in a sibling relationship. The reader cannot help but be moved: This is

the beauty of Shin Kyung-sook’s literature.

In “Yard with a Flowerpot,” K suffers from eating and language disorders,

which are rendered powerless by a tart cherry fruit salad and cucumber beef

dish. In “End of the World Shoes,” 15 teenage soldiers’ shoes with worn heels

and leather boots buried in the snow will warmly hug your haggard feet this

winter.

[November 11, 2011]


‘Cells of the City’: Inviting Alleys and Small Buildings

Lee Eun-ju Staff Reporter The JoongAng Ilbo

“Street Corner Architecture”

By Kim Seong-hong, Hyonamsa Publishing Co., 376 pages, 20,000 won

Twentieth century Koreans have lived their lives with a fine and efficient

eraser, cleanly eliminating any trace of the alleys that connected people like

capillaries. They swept away the little, hole-in-the-wall neighborhood stores

and small buildings alike, placing ostentatious large structures at these sites in

the belief that this was the model route to urban development.

“Street Corner Architecture” is a charming rebellion and, in opposition to its

unsophisticated easy-going title, contains a sharp rebuke to contemporary

Korean cities and architecture. The author, who has a leaning toward “small

architectural structures” and “low-roofline cities,” says that Korean

architecture has a future only where alleys and small buildings remain. He

says that we should reconsider the routine thought that huge dinosaur-sized

blocks and high-rise buildings are the “heroes of the cities.”

Moreover, the author explains the context in which cities develop with two key

words: “road” and “speed.” Shops with show windows were built after the

invention of glass. Arcades (roads enclosed in glass) were followed by

department stores and shopping malls connecting many stores together.

Finally, these architectural structures evolved to meet roads. The author also

notes the significance of industrial architecture in the development of cities.

“Speed” is also counted among the central elements of urban development.

The author notes that if the automobile accelerated the horizontal development

of cities, it was the elevator that hastened the vertical. He analyzes the

developments of roads, plazas, markets and shopping districts, dinosaur blocks

and alleys, and shopping malls and high-rises. He states that attractive cities

have a common point: They are good places to walk. Similarly, buildings

should not be overbearing, while houses and shops should merge naturally

with the roads.

What about Seoul? The desire for high-rise architecture seems endless and the

inner-city zone has been diagnosed as suffocating. Of a nationwide total of 6.5

million buildings, 97.5 percent are under five stories, and although these

smaller buildings are the majority, city architecture debate focuses on high-

rises only. The function of these buildings is both industrial and residential, yet

overlooks the charm of more friendly architectural designs.

“A city is a living organism. The answer to our problem is to be found in the

middle zone, which we have tried to erase during the last decades,” the author

tells us (page 310). The buildings in this zone are “street corner architecture.”

They are not restored romantic architecture. They are an architectural style that

shakes up the commonplace, hence, the importance of maintaining the “city

cells.” Like the roads in front of Hongik University and the Garosugil (Tree-

lined Street) in Gangnam, these side streets offer life to the city garden.

The author, who two years previously wrote “New Imagination in Urban

Architecture,” has returned to solid content and familiar narration. With deep

insight into space and urban history, tenacious problem solving and

levelheaded solutions, the book shows the merits of his effort.

[November, 12, 2011]


- Hyun Jung-hwa: ‘In both table tennis and life, a lucky ball isn’t really a lucky

ball.’

Hyun Jung-hwa: ‘In both table tennis and life, a lucky ball isn’t

really a lucky ball.’

Kim Yun-deok Deputy Feature Desk Editor The Chosun llbo

She can’t bear to be defeated. When she saw a 2.7 gram ping pong ball while

in third grade, it was as if she had met her destiny. Her obsession for winning

was ignited. She was so thin that her trousers drooped but she had “guts.” She

won her first national championship during the sixth grade. When she made a

clean sweep of all four titles (singles, doubles, mixed doubles and team events)

at the U.K. World Junior Open during her third year of middle school, she was

dubbed a “prodigy.”

Bronze medal in doubles at the 1986 Asian Games and championship in

doubles at the 1987 New Delhi World Championships were a prelude to a

string of glory to come for Hyun Jung-hwa: gold medal in doubles at the 1988

Seoul Olympics, championship in mixed doubles at the 1989 Dortmund World

Championships, championship in team events at the 1991 Chiba World

Championships, and championship in singles at the 1993 Gothenburg World

Championships.

Now the table tennis legend is the first Korean in the International Table

Tennis Federation (ITTF) Hall of Fame: She was inducted on November 23.

Over the phone, Hyun’s voice was dry like early winter leaves. She had just

returned from the 2011 Qatar Peace and Sport Table Tennis Cup in Doha. She

wasn’t happy about an interview request. “I have to go down to Yeongju

tomorrow for national team selection matches.”

She was too busy to get over her jet lag. The executive director of the Korea

Table Tennis Association (KTTA) and coach for the table tennis team of the

Korea Racing Authority and the national women’s table tennis team, she is

splitting her seconds. Between all these engagements she also has to

participate in the production of a movie about the unified South and North

Korean team that won the 1991 World Championships in Chiba, Japan.

I met Hyun at the community gym in Yeongju, North Gyeongsang Province.

She was a straight talker. The 42-year-old, typical Busan woman rapped out,

“You know I was the original sporting idol before Kim Yu-na” and “I can

never forget the famous hand-cut noodles (kalguksu) we had at Cheong Wa

Dae with President Kim Young-sam. What a dish for young athletes who had

just returned after sweating at international games!” As the selection matches

were finished earlier than expected, our interview began in her Jaguar driving

back to Seoul.

◇ Movie about the ‘Touching Story of 46 Days’

Q. You have a nice car!

A. My husband picked this. Mostly I’m the one who uses this car because I

have lots of work to do. My husband rides the bus. (laughter)

Q. Why are you so busy?

A. Every year there are at least 15 major games and, including others, there are

more than 20. And I must attend various events, look after the company, and

raise my children. And I also have interviews like this. It’s pretty tough.

Q. How does it feel being the first Korean player inducted to the

International Table Tennis Federation Hall of Fame?

A. It’s a great honor personally, but to be honest, it also gives me a huge

burden. The “first Korean” and other such descriptions accompanying my

name feel like a kind of shackle overwhelming me with an obsession that I

should keep doing well. I know it is right for me to return what have I received

through table tennis, but sometimes I feel the burden is too heavy.

Q. Is it such a great honor to be a Hall of Fame inductee?

A. It’s not the kind of honor you can get by winning a few titles. To get into

the Hall of Fame, you must have won at least five gold medals at world

championships and the Olympics. As China is widening its gap with Korea, it

won’t be easy to see our players inducted from now on.

Q. I suppose you ran into the North Korean team at the Peace and Sport

Table Tennis Cup. You might have felt awkward due to strained relations

between the two Koreas.

A. Not at all. North Koreans are the only team we can communicate with at

international games. How can we afford to be in bad terms with each other?

(laughter) We help each other and share food. This time we could eat

gochujang (red pepper paste) to our heart’s content as the North Korean team

brought lots of it.

Q. Have you heard about Li Bun-hui?

A. I have heard that she got married and had a disabled child after suffering

meningitis. They say she is working for a disabled people’s organization in

North Korea these days. It seems she is preparing for next year’s London

Olympics. Some time ago, the British ambassador in Seoul who had visited

North Korea gave me a picture of himself taken with Li Bun-hui. She has put

on a lot of weight. She looked so young and innocent before.

Q. Many people still talk about the exciting final game at the Chiba

championships, held on April 29, 1991. The “Korea” team of Hyun Jung-

hwa, Li Bun-hui, Hong Cha-ok and Yu Sun-bok won the gold medal by

the score 3-2 after battling the world’s strongest, China, over three hours

and 40 minutes.

A. I rarely cry but, on that day, I cried with my nose running. More than a

hundred reporters surrounded us as soon as our victory was confirmed.

Worried that we might be injured, our team managers had to escort us to the

locker room.

Q. Tell me about Li Bun-hui. What’s her personality like?

A. She wasn’t a particularly adorable person. (laughter) She had been such a

prominent player from a young age that she was at the same rank as leaders in

the North. She was a little arrogant probably because of her status as a national

hero. She always had a Kim Il-sung badge on her uniform. One day I asked

her for fun, “What’s that?” Then she blew her top.

Q. I understand that a movie is being made about the achievement of the

single Korean team in Chiba over those 46 days.

A. I heard that the movie would be released in May next year. I have worked

with them since the writing stage two years ago. It wasn’t an easy job. I had to

train the actresses who didn’t even know how to hold the paddle so they could

appear to be real athletes. I don’t know how they dared so recklessly to make

the movie, but we tried hard and it worked somehow. (laughter)

Q. Actress Ha Ji-won is playing your part.

A. She is smart and full of enthusiasm. She has sports sense. She couldn’t even

hold the racket properly at first, but in about a month, she had the right

posture.

Q. Do you want a box-office hit?

A. The film company says it’s a two-hour movie and you will just have to cry

through the latter half of one hour.

◇ I Love Nerve-racking Tension

Hyun Jung-hwa is famous for not revealing her emotions in games. She

maintained her calm attitude regardless of whether she was losing or wining.

She only shouted “Fighting!” powerfully. “I did so as not to be overwhelmed

by the opponent. Even in a losing situation, if you skillfully manipulate the

opponent’s timing, you can seize the chance to win right away. I shout

‘Fighting!’ to grab that chance and not to reveal my weakness.” Maybe this is

why most of her victories were come-from-behind wins. Her fierce spirit of

challenge made her a national star.

Q. It must have been very difficult to turn around a match that you were

about to lose.

A. I always had the confidence that I could turn the match around. That’s not

simply a matter of techniques. It’s about willpower. You can get hold of a

chance to win if you use concentration, no matter how big the score gap is.

Q. It makes the spectators breathless.

A. I get breathless too. (laughter) But I like how I feel when catching up,

narrowing the gap with each score. I cherish the tight-fistedness and the nerve-

racking tension. The twinge inside me when I have the first sip of my coffee

early in the morning and the shuddering from my hair standing on end when I

enter the gym for a match··· I love these feelings. What I hate most is the

languidness I feel after a meal. Without tension it’s not like living.

Q. Don’t you ever feel the urge to just throw your racket and run away?

A. I do. But giving up means defeat. For athletes for whom sports is

everything, winning is the only goal and life itself.

Q. They say Hyun Jung-hwa earned her gold medals with her strong

willpower rather than her skills.

A. I felt the fire burning inside me when I lost. (laughter)

Q. Such a temperament might have cost you friends.

A. I’m fierce while playing my games only. I have lots of friends. (laughter) I

tend to open my heart first and try to be considerate of others.

Q. You were widely known as an athlete fiercely training.

A. In sports you improve exactly as much as you have invested your time and

as much as you have sweated to practice. This is the truth: neither more nor

less. I always had blisters on my feet. Those days when we were players, we

practiced and played our games on wooden floors, not on rubber mats. We

would feel our soles burning. I used to break the blisters on my feet with a

needle and insert thread, which would absorb the oozing fluid so it would not

spread. I continued to train with my feet sore with burst blisters getting bigger

and adding to pain. Aching all over my body, I didn’t dare to ask for a day off.

Even when I felt I could do much better if I slept just one hour longer, I never

voiced what I wanted. There is no compromise in the world of sports. You

should be fierce to survive. There’s only one champion. I had to step on others

one by one to stand on my own.

Q. Did you practice longer than your colleagues?

A. I just started 10 minutes earlier and stayed 10 minutes longer than others. I

didn’t practice for very long. I especially trained hard to improve my

concentration. I frantically practiced focusing on the ball, looking at only the

ball and the paddle, not at the opponent’s face. While training like that, you

realize there comes the moment when the ball, the paddle and your body

become one. Then I get to hit the ball as if I am possessed.

◇ I Played Ping Pong for My Mom

Q. I suppose you were greatly influenced by your father who had been a

table tennis player at Pusan Commercial High School.

A. My father was always sick. He was bed-ridden with a chronic lung disease

and passed away when I was in the second year of middle school. I remember

that he sometimes came to cheer me up in a match or gave me an ice cream

when I came home late after training, saying, ‘Eat this so you can recover from

fatigue quickly.’ He passed away without seeing me become a member of the

national team.

Q. Your mother adamantly opposed her second daughter becoming a table

tennis player.

A. I wasn’t poor in my studies while she believed that athletes were poor. She

gave up when I came home with four medals from the U.K. World Junior

Open. (laughter) But I played table tennis for my mom. To maintain our

livelihood, my mom was never at home. Working as a cook for a big company,

she left home very early in the morning and came home late at night every day.

Still, she never forgot to prepare lunch and snacks for her three daughters. I

really loved Sunday morning. Since there was no training, I could enjoy my

long sleep hearing the sound of my mom preparing a meal in the kitchen. On

Sunday afternoons, we all went to a public bathhouse to scrub off dead skin

and came back drinking yogurt. I never saw my mom taking a nap. I wanted to

be successful for my mom; I told myself I should become a champion for my

mom.

Q. The late 1980s and the early 1990s were your heydays. Don’t you miss

those days?

A. Win or lose, I quickly let it go. With another match in a month, there is no

time to be carried away in triumph. This is true with me of these days too. The

game is over on the day it is held. You have to prepare for next game. It’s a

waste of time to reflect on the moment of victory.

Q. When you won the gold medal in the 1988 Seoul Olympics, you were as

popular as Kim Yu-na today. You even did a commercial for a cosmetic

brand.

A. I received a thousand fan letters every few days and my room was full of

dolls. All of them were from high school girls. The cosmetic commercial is a

fun memory, too. I stood before the camera, wearing a heavy makeup done

over two hours like a bride on the wedding day, and was even asked to smile

gracefully. That was quite difficult for me. (laughter)

Q. I wonder which games you remember most vividly.

A. The 1988 Seoul Olympics, the 1991 Chiba World Championships, and the

1993 Gothenburg World Championships where I won the singles title.

Q. What comes to your mind when you are standing on the winner’s

platform watching the Korean national flag being raised?

A. I realize I am Korean. Strangely, I never cried when I was the winner, but I

shed lots of tears when the Korean flag goes up in victory ceremonies of other

players. (laughter)

Q. You must have received many congratulatory messages from

presidents.

A. Yes, I did from former President Chun Doo-hwan to the current President

Lee Myung-bak. From my position as an athlete, I liked President Chun Doo-

hwan because he seemed like a man of big caliber. He gave us substantial

support and encouragement. President Kim Young-sam invited us to Cheong

Wa Dae twice but all we ate there both times was kalguksu (hand-cut noodles

in soup), which tremendously disappointed us. What a dish to serve for young

athletes who had returned after playing in international games! (laughter)

Q. There must have been some games that are painful to remember.

A. The 1992 Barcelona Olympics where I was beaten by China’s Deng Yaping

in both singles and doubles events. I returned with two bronze medals amid icy

reaction from people. Actually, a bronze medal is also worthy of praise, isn’t

it? (laughter) I was overly obsessed with medals. I thought of little else but

how to win medals. I should have shed the thought to play a truly great game.

Q. You have never defeated Deng Yaping after all?

A. Not in singles··· She had enormous energy. We had a fiery showdown every

time we met. I couldn’t help but think, “Wow, she’s powerful!’ (laughter)

◇ Without Yang Young-ja, There is No Hyun Jung-hwa

Q. After you got defeated by Deng Yaping in Barcelona, the media poured

out articles declaring, “Hyun Jung-hwa’s era has gone.”

A. I was in a slump. But rather than overcoming the slump, I should say I

changed my view of table tennis. I had thought that I should win first place by

all means and that only the first place winner could impress people. But I came

to realize that some people still cared about me and encouraged me when I

failed to become the champion and suffered frustration. I just needed to do my

best to have a good match without being obsessed with victory.

Q. Maybe, it was how you became the first Korean player to win the gold

medal in a women’s singles event at the Gothenburg World

Championships the following year.

A. I can understand the slump of swimmer Park Tae-hwan better than anyone.

He is a truly great athlete because he has overcome his slump. Unlike women,

male athletes rarely overcome their slump. I think Kim Yu-na deserves

applause whatever path she takes in the future. So far she has given our nation

more happiness and joy than anyone could. I believe that with her

achievements Kim Yu-na can vie for membership on the International Olympic

Committee.

Q. After hitting a grand slam you retired in 1994. Wasn’t it too early?

A. I would have stayed, if it brought me money. (laughter) It was impossible to

become a champion without hard training. And I couldn’t stand becoming a

champion without hard training. So I was exhausted. I wanted to retire when I

could be remembered as a good athlete.

Q. In view of the long years of glory, I suppose you suffered from

considerable aftereffects.

A. I could sleep more in the morning because I didn’t have to train, but I was

awake at six o’clock every morning. At a loss, I signed up for an early

morning English class at a language institute. (laughter) For the first six

months, I felt as if I was walking on air. I didn’t know what I was living for. I

studied at a graduate school but with no physical pain any more, I continued to

feel depressed. I became busy again after taking my coaching job, and I was

cured naturally.

Q. Do you have a mentor?

A. My table tennis teacher in high school days taught me more about

cultivating my inner character than table tennis techniques. Also I can never

forget Lee Elisa, who was the national team coach when I joined the team in

my senior year of middle school. She changed my playing into a swift forward

attack style. Yang Young-ja is another important figure in my life. Without

Yang Young-ja, there is no Hyun Jung-hwa. She shot the ball low in her

midway drive style, while my ball spun rapidly in a swift forward attack style.

We made up a fantastic double to beat any male team. She is now working as a

missionary in Mongolia. When she was in Seoul a couple of years ago, she

said worriedly that I’d lost too much weight. She’s really a sweet person.

Q. We witnessed your sharp temper when both you and Yoo Nam-kyu

resigned as national team coaches in 2007 to protest the Korea Table

Tennis Association’s infringement on the rights of coaches.

A. It’s nothing good to recall but I don’t regret what I did. If we keep our eyes

closed, hoping to muddle through, it will merely breed poison.

Q. Now you are serving as executive director of the association.

A. Team coaches should be given as much authority as possible and take full

responsibility for that. The association exists for the sake of Korean table

tennis, not for the interest of any individual or a specific team.

◇ Lucky Ball isn’t Really a Lucky Ball

Q. Is there someone you seek counsel from when you have to make an

important decision?

A. I usually make a decision by myself. This is because my parents, teachers

and seniors taught me well.

Q. I believe you can also rely on your husband (Kim Seok-man) who was a

fellow table tennis player.

A. When I ask for his advice, he always replies in ways to make me feel at

ease. When I resigned as the national team coach, he said to me, “Do as you

want.” He knew I wouldn’t change my mind even if he opposed. (laughter)

Q. How did you meet him?

A. We met when I was 20. He often served as my training partner at the

Taereung National Training Center. We married after dating for 10 years but,

because of training and playing games, the total time we spent dating was less

than that other couples would have in one year.

Q. He was not a famous athlete. What about him did you find attractive?

A. Though brusque, he was kind only to me. (laughter) Knowing the

difficulties of athletes, he was a big comfort to me.

Q. He might have had some inner conflict as the husband of a famous

woman.

A. I couldn’t say he didn’t have any conflict, though he has never expressed it.

I try to be nice to him. And I always express how much I am sorry for being

busy. When I am home, I do my best to take care of our two children and do

my role as a wife. There has been no big issue to argue about between us.

Q. Is he a good father?

A. He is an instructor of sport for all. Upon coming home from work, his first

questions for our children are “Did you do your English homework?” and

“How about today’s home study math?’ (laughter)

Q. What kind of mother are you?

A. I often have overseas trips so I keep my suitcases in the living room. My

children are used to this and when they see me packing, they just say, “You are

leaving for somewhere again. Have a nice trip, Mom.” (laughter) But I am a

stern mother when it comes to education. I take up a whip sometimes, if they

lie or don’t do what they have to do. If they forget to bring something to

school, I never bring it for them because they need to learn a lesson from being

scolded by their teacher.

Q. What kind of person do you want them to grow into?

A. A person who helps other people and society. Since I have led an

achievement-oriented life pursuing the top position, I know it is not all that is

important. I want to teach them that there is a more beautiful and meaningful

life than being a champion.

Q. There are rumors that you are a heavy drinker.

A. Is that so? I can drink about two bottles of soju. I like to drink because it

makes people get closer to each other.

Q. I have heard that you are a big eater despite your slim figure.

A. I enjoy eating. I can eat even dog meat. I started to eat dog meat to increase

my stamina and then I developed a taste for it. (laughter) The day after eating

dog meat, my face becomes greasy and I certainly feel less tired.

Q. Hyun Jung-hwa was a fierce player. Are you a fierce coach?

A. I should be a fierce coach, but it’s not easy to become one. I cannot but be

considerate because I know too well about the difficulties experienced by

athletes. When I think I have given them a trough time, I take them out to a

nice meal and watch a movie together. (laughter) But I never forgive them

when they easily give up a game. I say, “Table tennis is your life. You think it’s

so easy? Drop it, then!”

Q. How would you compare table tennis and life? Do you find any

similarities between them?

A. A lucky ball isn’t really a lucky ball. It may seem to offer a golden

opportunity for powerful smashing, but it often conceals a trap. It requires

even more careful handling. I tell my players never to hit a ball carelessly. You

should exercise great care with each and every ball. Life offers us only three

opportunities and we should be ready all the time to grab them.

[December 3, 2011]


COPYRIGHT

Korea Focus is a monthly webzine (www.koreafocus.or.kr), featuring commentaries and essays on Korean politics, economy, society and culture, as well as relevant international issues. The articles are selected from leading Korean newspapers, magazines, journals and academic papers from prestigious forums. The content is the property of the Korea Foundation and is protected by copyright and other intellectual property laws. If it is needed to reprint an article(s) from Korea Focus, please forward your request for reprint permission by fax or via e-mail. Address: The Korea Foundation Seocho P.O. Box 227, Diplomatic Center Building, 2558 Nambusunhwanno, Seocho-gu, Seoul, 137-863, Korea Tel: (82-2) 2151-6526 Fax: (82-2) 2151-6592 E-mail: [email protected] ISBN 978-89-86090-81-9

Publisher Kim Woo-sang Editor Lee Kyong-hee Editorial Board

Kang Byeong-tae Chief Editorial Writer, The Hankook Ilbo Kim Hak-soon Senior Writer & Columnist, The Kyunghyang Daily News Kim Yong-jin Professor, Ajou University Yun Chang-hyun Professor, University of Seoul Hahm In-hee Professor, Ewha Womans University Kim Ho-ki Professor, Yonsei University Choi Sung-ja Member, Cultural Heritage Committee Hong Chan-sik Chief Editorial Writer, The Dong-a Ilbo Robert Fouser Professor, Seoul National University Peter Beck Korea Represetative, Asia Foundation

ⓒ The Korea Foundation 2012 All rights reserved


korea focus - january 2012

Documents

national unification

ministry of unification

time of unification

recipients unification

socalled unification

copyright unification

prospective unification

previous unification