'Hefty work but long way to go'

By Kim Hyun-bin

The Moon Jae-in government still has a long way to go to handle loads of work, a group of professors said Monday while evaluating 2018.

The professors picked the four-Chinese-character idiom “imjungdowon” (任重道遠), meaning “hefty load but a long way to go,” as the expression that best describes this year's social atmosphere.

A weekly journal of professors conducted a survey from Dec. 5 to 14 to pick the most representative idiom of the year.

Among the 878 participants, 38.8 percent chose imjungdowon, which is seen as an evaluation of the Moon administration's second year.

Kyung Hee University professor Jeon Ho-geun, who recommended the phrase, said the idiom best expresses the government's current state, which he believes has a long way to go to fulfill its political agenda.

“The current administration has many problems to overcome to fulfill its policy for peace on the Korean Peninsula and other domestic objectives. I chose the idiom in hopes the administration can overcome all hardships through strong will,” Jeon said.

Most of the professors who chose the idiom expressed similar hopes, supporting the government's policies and reforms, according to the journal.

“There is a lot of opposition to the government's reforms and the media have been underestimating its achievements and exaggerating any errors they find. The government has its hands full in terms of problems it needs to solve,” another professor who picked the idiom told the journal. “There is stubborn resistance but there is no future without reform.”

But another professor used the word to criticize the government and the ruling bloc, saying, “The word goes to the government officials and ruling party members who are repeating old-fashioned behaviors. I hope they'll learn the lesson from the phrase.”

The idiom “milwunbulwu” (密雲不雨), which means “clouds fill the sky but no rain,” came in second with 23.9 percent of the votes.

Jeju University professor Ko Sung-bin, who recommended the word, says the government has made many situations ripe for some crucial changes but seen results are not being made.

“There have been drastic changes ― the inter-Korean talks which ended the hostile relations with the North, the U.S.-North Korea summit over denuclearization and income-led growth. But these are not bearing detailed fruit and only positive outlooks continue,” Ko said.

“Gongjaebulsa” (功在不舍), meaning “success is possible when the person never quits,” came in third with 15.3 percent of the votes.

Korea University professor Kim Sun-taek, who recommended the word, stressed the strong will for reform. “I recommend the idiom in hopes the government will never give in and continue its reform drive which will bring results,” Kim said.