People kindle light of hope for 2017

An image of a lit candle is made up of 5,000 photos taken of candlelit protests since October. Millions of people took to the streets against the influence-peddling scandal involving President Park Geun-hye and her confidant Choi Soon-sil. Through the peaceful rallies, the people showed their strong will to protect an important value of society — democracy. / Korea Times photo by Kim Ju-sung

By Kim Bo-eun

The year 2016 will go down in history as the year of the “candlelight revolution” that ignited a drive to unseat President Park Geun-hye and make Korea a more democratic nation.

Despite the people’s disappointment with the scandalous Park administration, hopes abound for the New Year.

“The people, who united for better politics and the nation, will serve as an antidote to corruption and a catalyst to change the society,” said Shin Gwang-yeong, a sociology professor at Chung-Ang University.

The professor said people will continue to have a bigger say in politics and state affairs through diverse avenues in 2017, including exercising their voting rights in the year of the presidential election.

“The people will evaluate politicians with higher standards than before, and therefore expectations for 2017 are more hopeful,” Shin said.

Citizens, who have poured out onto the streets at Gwanghwamun Square every Saturday since October to demand President Park step down, hope their next leader will be different.

“I wish the next President will be less authoritarian, and truly serve the people,” said Bae Se-ho, 23, a university student.

The people have already put an end to the Park administration although the impeached President awaits a final call from the Constitutional Court.

They were angry as Park misused the power given by the people at the cost of such social values as democracy, fairness and law and order.

With an early presidential election expected next year, the people have strong hopes for a better president.

“Park was a leader who was intolerant of those who voiced opposition against her or criticized her,” said Chung Won-sil, a 55-year-old educator. “We need a more open-minded, democratic and rational president.”

Yang Mi-jeong, a 30-year-old resident in Seoul, said, “I hope the next president will be someone who can stick to the basics. I don’t want to hear dazzling yet hollow pledges seeking to win votes. I want someone who endeavors to have the law kept and protect the rights of the people.”

Of course, there are also many people critical of the candlelit rallies. They say the silent majority of 49 million citizens didn’t participate in the protests or that the rallies are nothing more than typical herd behavior often witnessed in Korea.

Still, many say the rallies should not be underestimated.

“The embarrassing scandal disgraced the nation, but at the same time, I think, the candlelit rallies helped recover the nation’s image,” said Professor Shin.

“The people-led protests, a new phenomenon which spurred politicians, the government and the prosecution, will remain a very important point in politics.”

What started as a crowd of 200,000 on Oct. 29 grew to 1 million on Nov. 12, 1.9 million nationwide on Nov. 26 and a record 2.32 million after the President’s third national address on the scandal, in which she said she would leave her resignation up to the National Assembly.

Despite such a huge crowd gathering in central Seoul, the rallies have been peaceful. Their collective voice forced politicians to move, inducing the passage of a motion to impeach the President on Dec. 9.

The scale and duration of the protests have been unprecedented in Korea’s modern history, far surpassing those of pro-democracy movements in the 1980s — as many as a total 10 million are expected to have taken part in 10 consecutive rallies by Dec. 31.

Oh Hyun-chul, a social studies education professor at Chonbuk National University, said, “The nature of the rallies held here — which are not led by political parties, labor unions, religious groups or interest groups but held voluntarily by the people, for such an extended period of time — is definitely notable.”