The Korean dream

By Ranjit Kumar Dhawan

From the ruins of the brutal Japanese colonial rule (1910-45) and the devastating Korean War (1950-53), Korea emerged and became one of the fastest growing economies in the world. A country whose per-capita income was less than $100 in the 1950s and was often regarded as a basket case by many analysts became a member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 1996.

The leaders and people of Korea dreamed of making their nation prosperous and powerful. Since the 1960s Korea’s economy grew rapidly under the leadership of Park Chung-hee (1961-79). In that time, Korea transformed itself into an industrial giant within a few decades. The nation and large corporations promised the people jobs for life and kept the rural-urban disparities under control through the measures like the Saemaeul Undong.

The Korean dream inspired the “Miracle on the Han River.” Korea had low income inequity and people worked hard for the national goal of catching-up to the West. Although Korea had a capitalist economic system, the economic security provided by the authoritarian developmental state was far better than several socialist and democratic countries of the period. Democratic freedom was curtailed during the period of the authoritarian regimes but resources were not as concentrated either.

The late 1980s witnessed democratic consolidation in Korea. To some scholars, though, the democratization of the nation did not work in the interest of common people in the country. The democratic leaders adopted neo-liberal economic policies that increased socio-economic problems of the masses. Although with globalization and liberalization of the economy there was an increase in the per-capita income, it also led to the massive concentration of wealth in Korea.

The Korean dream shattered when the 1997 Asian financial crisis struck Korea. The belief that the big business groups of chaebol were too big to fail fell apart as several of them went bankrupt. Thousands of people lost their jobs and the economy soon collapsed. Under the supervision of International Monetary Fund (IMF) Korea was forced to make massive structural changes to its economy.

To revive the Korean dream the people’s government of President Kim Dae-jung (1998-2003) initiated mass-participatory economics, and started building a welfare state. Later, the Korean dream succeeded in spreading the Korean wave or hallyu in other parts of Asia and world.

In recent years Korea finds itself in another economic slump. Exports have declined and fewer jobs are available for the young. The middle class is shrinking and the birth rate has become so low that according to a report by the National Assembly Research Service the entire Korean population may be extinct by the year 2750.

The young in Korea are becoming hopeless and many look for opportunities overseas. Koreans are known as highly nationalist and patriotic people, but the growing economic problems are forcing Koreans to leave their country and look for new homelands. Maternity trips to countries like the U.S and Canada have become popular among those who wish to have secure careers for their unborn children.

The citizens have an urgent need to stop the Korean economy from declining, heading toward Japanese-style lost decades. Korea should decrease its dependence on those sectors where the field is crowded with foreign competitors. Instead the focus should be on promotion of services industries such as tourism, banking, health care, entertainment and education. Innovation of new technologies and building a creative economy are important for reviving Korea.

Koreans can survive in the most adverse circumstances. Therefore, the Korean dream must not end. There should be continuous efforts to create another Miracle on the Han River.

The author is a Ph.D. candidate at the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, India. His e-mail address is rkdhawan13@hotmail.com.