The Olympics and anti-Americanism

By Steve Tharp

I am both very proud and happy that South Korea is hosting the 2018 Winter Olympics, but I am also somewhat apprehensive. An event like the Olympics tends to raise nationalism in all countries and, from my experience, especially in Korea. Korean nationalism and anti-Americanism both spiked in 1988 and 2002 just after the hosting of the Summer Olympics and the co-hosting of the FIFA World Cup, respectively.

An August 1988 KBS Poll found that 56 percent of respondents chose the United States as one of “the three countries they liked best” but that dropped to 40 percent in a similar poll in October 1988, just a month after the Olympics were held. Fourteen years later, a PEW survey identified “U.S. favorability” ratings of 58 percent in 2001, dropping to 52 percent in 2002 and 46 percent in 2003.

Many attribute the anti-Americanism in 2002 solely to a tragic traffic accident involving the US military that resulted in the death of two middle school girls. However, that was just the straw that broke the camel’s back. The anti-Americanism spike had its beginnings in the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City with an incident involving short track speed skater Apolo Ohno. It gained steam during the World Cup in June and politicians and celebrities fanned the flames of anti-Americanism during the presidential election in the fall of 2002. There were even “No Americans” signs in some restaurant windows in South Korea.

It is now 16 years later and South Korea is about to host the world’s premier winter sports competition. The conditions are very different from both 1988 and 2002 but elements still exist that could contribute to another spike in anti-sentiment.

To begin with, there is a general dislike and fear of U.S. President Donald Trump.

A June 2017 PEW survey recorded a “US favorability” rating of 84 percent at the end of the President Barack Obama administration and a subsequent drop of 9 percentage points to 75 percent under President Trump. A more recent November 2017 PEW survey found that 43 percent of South Korean respondents believed their country’s relationship with the U.S. would worsen during President Trump’s administration. On an anecdotal level, my Korean family members are terrified that President Trump will start a war with the North. Hopefully his staff will distract him from his twitter account for the next two months.

Another influential factor will be the behavior of the American athletes, both on and off the field of competition. They need to avoid negative incidents similar to those that occurred in 1988. A recent shoplifting episode in China involving UCLA basketball players might help deter bad behavior on the part of the US Olympic athletes.

Also, of course, the behavior of the U.S. Forces Korea service members during the period, which will extend from now through March 18, is critical. U.S. military leaders always emphasize good behavior with junior service members and are likely to increase that focus during the next two months, but it only takes one negative act to upset the apple cart, as we learned in 2002.

What is unknown right now is how the Korean populace will react towards the United States and its athletes during the Olympics. In 1988, South Koreans were observed cheering wildly for the Soviet athletes during competitions against the Americans. In 2002, I watched on TV as the South Korean soccer team mimicked a speed skating maneuver in front of the American net after South Korea scored, which brought a very emotional reaction from their fans in the bar where I was watching the game. I found both events disconcerting.

A final factor will be the presence of the North Korean delegation. It has long been my contention that there is a zero-sum game in South Korea when it comes to sentiment for and against the U.S. and North Korea. When pro-North Korean sentiment increases, pro-U.S. sentiment goes down, and the converse is also true. A possible effect of the combined Korean delegation may be that some South Koreans view the U.S. and its athletes in a more negative manner.

I hope my concerns prove unfounded and that we don’t have another spike in anti-Americanism in the coming months. While there is never a good time for a wedge to be driven into the ROK-U.S. alliance, this seems an especially bad time given the current political and security situation. Let’s not repeat history but instead, as they say at the ROK-US Combined Forces Command, “Let’s Go Together!”

Steve Tharp is a retired U.S. Army officer who served 26 years with the U.S. military in Korea, including six years negotiating with North Korean Army officers at Panmunjeom and 10 years managing and overseeing the U.S. Forces Korea “Good Neighbor Program.” Write to daraemm@gmail.com