Latest news with #Daegu
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
South Korean voters weigh political divide in partisan heartlands
The top contenders in South Korea's presidential vote Tuesday have framed their campaigns as an existential fight for the country's soul, and whoever wins will have to unite a sharply-polarised society. The election was triggered by ex-leader Yoon Suk Yeol's disastrous declaration of martial law last year. All major polls suggest victory for Lee Jae-myung of the liberal Democratic Party, with Kim Moon-soo of the right-wing People Power Party (PPP) trailing far behind. From the city of Daegu, for decades synonymous with conservatism, to Gwangju, the spiritual heartland of the left, AFP spoke to voters about where they stand and how the country's divide can be healed. - Switching sides - Lee Woo-hyun, an entertainment professional from Daegu and long-time conservative voter, told AFP the martial law fiasco "really shook" him. "When I talk to my parents and other senior citizens, I can see they are turning away from the red," the 45-year-old said, referring to the symbolic colour of the PPP. "Some might wonder how one incident could completely change my stance," Lee said. "But for me, it did. A lot of people in their mid-40s feel the same way. They don't think what happened was right." - Generational divide - Ko Seung-ju, an electrical engineering major, sees growing cracks in Daegu's traditional conservative support base. "Younger voters are no longer likely to blindly support the conservatives," Ko said. The Yoon administration's decision to cut the national research and development budget has hit science and engineering students hard, he said. "I really hope that gets reinstated." - 'Balance is important' - Kim Sung-gyun, 60, a former automotive industry worker, said he is undecided. He disagreed with Yoon's attempt to impose martial law, which he described as creating "extreme chaos". "People's lives are already difficult enough." But he expressed reservations about one side gaining unchecked power -- pointing to the opposition's near two-thirds majority in parliament. "Balance is important," he said. He said he plans to vote for whoever he believes "puts the people first", regardless of traditional regional loyalties. - The unshaken - Shopowner Kim remains unfazed by the martial law bid. "Declaring martial law was wrong, but nothing actually happened afterwards so they should just move on," said Kim, who declined to share his full name over privacy concerns. For the 69-year-old, the local economy is the primary concern. He said it was "wiped out" by the Covid-19 pandemic and has never recovered. "It's impossible to keep a business afloat -- there's rent to pay, wages to cover and constant stress piling on." - A vote for democracy - Lee Gwi-nye, 79, a lifelong resident of Gwangju, voiced firm support for the Democratic Party and its candidate Lee. "Democracy lets us live freely and comfortably," she said. "But parties like the PPP, honestly, don't feel democratic at all." To her, democracy means "being able to live and act freely, with peace of mind". - 'History matters' - Jung Se-yoon, 65, a retired teacher, said she doesn't believe in voting solely along party lines. But she vividly recalled a bloody 1980 crackdown in Gwangju by South Korea's former military regime which left hundreds dead or missing. "Those experiences still resonate. That's why I believe history matters," she said. The upcoming election must serve as a "turning point". "It will take far too long for the country to get back on its feet if we miss this chance -- and by then, we might fall too far behind," Jung said. - Beyond party lines - Haylee Lee, an English teacher, urged fellow Gwangju residents to "make a decision based on their own convictions" rather than fall into habitual partisan voting. What matters most to her is how much effort presidential hopefuls make to listen to the concerns of ordinary people. "Many politicians come from privileged backgrounds," she said. "I wonder how well they actually listen to the voices of the middle class." - Pressure as a centrist - Park Yeon-ok, 64, who works at a social enterprise in Gwangju, told AFP she often faces pressure when she identifies as a centrist. "Many people immediately ask: 'So you're not supporting the Democratic Party? Then are you backing the People Power Party?' That kind of reaction is pretty common," she said. In this election, Park sees PPP candidate Kim as someone capable of bringing about unity. "The divisions run deep," she said. "I hope the next leader can help bridge those gaps." hj/oho/ceb/fox/rsc
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
They helped oust a president - now South Korean women say they are invisible again
An Byunghui was in the middle of a video game on the night of 3 December when she learned that the South Korean president had declared martial law. She couldn't quite believe it - until the internet blew up with the evidence. The shock announcement from then-president Yoon Suk Yeol, the now-famous shots of soldiers breaking down the windows of the National Assembly and MPs scaling the walls to force their way into the building so they could vote the motion down. Within hours, thousands had spurred into protest, especially young women. And Byunghui joined them, travelling hundreds of miles from Daegu in the south-east to the capital Seoul. They turned up not just because Yoon's decision had alarmed and angered them, but to protest against a president who insisted South Korea was free of sexism - despite the deep discrimination and flashes of violence that said otherwise. They returned week after week as the investigation into Yoon's abuse of power went on - and they rejoiced when he was impeached after four dramatic months. And yet, with the country set to elect a new president on 3 June, those very women say they feel invisible again. The two main candidates have been largely silent about equality for women. A polarising subject, it had helped Yoon into power in 2022 as he vowed to defend men who felt sidelined in a world that they saw as too feminist. And a third candidate, who is popular among young men for his anti-feminist stance, has been making headlines. For many young South Korean women, this new name on the ballot symbolises a new fight. "So many of us felt like we were trying to make the world a better place by attending the [anti-Yoon] rallies," the 24-year-old college student says. "But now, I wonder if anything has really improved… I can't shake the feeling that they're trying to erase women's voices." When Byunghui arrived at the protests, she was struck by the atmosphere. The bitter December cold didn't stop tens of thousands of women from gathering. Huddling inside hooded jackets or under umbrellas, waving lightsticks and banners, singing hopeful K-pop numbers, they demanded Yoon's ouster. "Most of those around me were young women, we were singing 'Into the World' by Girls' Generation," Byunghui says. Into the World, a hit from 2007 by one of K-pop's biggest acts, became an anthem of sorts in the anti-Yoon rallies. Women had marched to the same song nearly a decade ago in anti-corruption protests that ended another president's career. "The lyrics - about not giving up on this world and dreaming of a new world," Byunghui says, "just overwhelmed me. I felt so close to everyone". There are no official estimates of how many of the protesters were young women. Approximately one in three were in their 20s or 30s, according to research by local news outlet Chosun Daily. An analysis by BBC Korean found that women in their 20s were the largest demographic at one rally in December, where there were 200,000 of them - almost 18% of those in attendance. In comparison, there were just over 3% of men in their 20s at that rally. The protests galvanised women in a country where discrimination, sexual harassment and even violence against them has long been pervasive, and the gender pay gap - at 31% - is the widest among rich nations. Like in so many other places, plummeting birth rates in South Korea too have upped the pressure on young women to marry and have children, with politicians often encouraging them to play their part in a patriarchal society. "I felt like all the frustration that has built up inside me just burst forth," says 23-year-old Kim Saeyeon . "I believe that's why so many young women turned up. They wanted to express all that dissatisfaction." For 26-year-old Lee Jinha, it was the desire to see Yoon go: "I tried to go every week. It wasn't easy. It was incredibly cold, super crowded, my legs hurt and I had a lot of work to do… but it was truly out of a sense of responsibility." That is not surprising, according to Go Min-hee, associate professor of political science at Ewha Women's University, who says Yoon had the reputation of being "anti-feminist" and had "made it clear he was not going to support policies for young women". There were protests on the other side too, backing Yoon and his martial law order. Throughout, many young South Korean men have supported Yoon, who positioned himself as a champion of theirs, mirroring their grievances in his presidential campaign in 2022. These men consider themselves victims of "reverse discrimination", saying they feel marginalised by policies that favour young women. One that is often cited is the mandatory 18 months they must spend in the military, which they believe puts them at a severe disadvantage compared to women. They label as "man haters" those women who call themselves feminists. And they have been at the heart of a fierce online backlash against calls for greater gender equality. These groups have long existed, mostly out of the public eye. But over the years they moved closer to the mainstream as their traction online grew, especially under Yoon. It was them that Yoon appealed to in his campaign pledges, vowing to abolish the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, saying it focused too much on women's rights. And he consistently denied systemic gender inequality existed in South Korea, which ranks near the bottom on the issue among developed countries. But his message hit home. A survey by a local newspaper the year before he was elected had found that 79% of young men in their 20s felt "seriously discriminated against" because of their gender. "In the last presidential election, gender conflict was mobilised by Yoon's party," says Kim Eun-ju, director of the Center for Korean Women and Politics. "They actively strengthened the anti-feminist tendencies of some young men in their 20s." During Yoon's term, she says, government departments or publicly-funded organisations with the word "women" in their title largely disappeared or dropped the reference altogether. The impact has been polarising. It alienated young women who saw this as a rollback of hard-won rights, even as it fuelled the backlash against feminism. Byunghui saw this up-close back home in Daegu. She says anti-Yoon protests were overwhelmingly female. The few men who came were usually older. Young men, she adds, even secondary school students, would often drive past the protests she attended cursing and swearing at them. She says some men even threatened to drive into the crowd. "I wondered if they would have acted this way had the protest been led by young men?" With Yoon gone, his People Power Party (PPP) is in disarray and still reeling from his fall. And this is the first time in 18 years that there is no woman among the seven candidates runnning for president. "It's shocking," Jinha says, "that there's no-one". In the last election, there were two women among 14 presidential candidates. The PPP's Kim Moon-soo is trailing frontrunner Lee Jae-myung, from the main opposition Democratic Party (DP). But young women tell the BBC they have been disappointed by 61-year-old Lee. "It's only after criticism that that there were no policies targeting women that the DP began adding a few," Saeyeon says. "I wish they could have drawn a blueprint for improving structural discrimination." When he was asked at the start of his campaign about policies targeting gender inequality, Lee responded: "Why do you keep dividing men and women? They are all Koreans." After drawing critcism, the DP acknowledged that women still "faced structural discrimination in many areas". And it pledged to tackle inequality for women with more resources at every level. During his presidential bid in 2022, Lee was more vocal about the prejudice South Korean women encounter, seeking their votes in the wake of high-profile sexual harassment scandals in his party. He had promised to put women in top positions in the government and appointed a woman as co-chair of the DP's emergency committee. "It's evident that the DP is focusing significantly less on young women than they did in the [2022] presidential election," Ms Kim says. Prof Go believes it's because Lee "lost by a very narrow margin" back then. So this time, he is "casting the widest net possible" for votes. "And embracing feminist issues is not a good strategy for that." That stings for young women like Saeyeon, especially after the role they played in the protests calling for Yoon's impeachment: "Our voices don't seem to be reflected in the [campaign] pledges at all. I feel a bit abandoned." The ruling party's Kim Moon-soo, who served in Yoon's cabinet as labour minister, has emphasised raising birth rates by offering more financial support to parents. But many women say rising costs are not the only obstacle. And that most politicians don't address the deeper inequalities - which make it hard to balance a career and family - that are making so many women reconsider the usual choices. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, which Yoon had wanted to shut down, has also re-emerged as a sticking point. Lee has vowed to strengthen the ministry, while Kim says he will replace it with a Ministry of Future Youth and Family. The ministry already focuses on family services, education and welfare for children. Just under 7% of its total funding, which is about 0.2% of the government's annual budget, goes towards improving equality for women. But Prof Go says the ministry was "politicised by Yoon and has since been weaponised". "The ministry itself is not huge but it's symbolic… abolishing it would show that gender equality is unimportant." It's also the target of a third candidate, 40-year-old Lee Jun-seok, a former leader of Yoon's party, who has since launched his own Reform Party. Although trailing Kim in polls, Lee Jun-seok has been especially popular with many young men for his anti-feminist views. Earlier this week, he drew swift outrage after a presidential debate in which he said: "If someone says they want to stick chopsticks in women's genitals or some place like that, is that misogyny?" He said the "someone" was frontunner Lee Jae-myung's son, who he claimed made the comment online, an allegation which the Lee camp has sidestepped, apologising for other controversial posts. But watching Lee Jun-seok say that on live TV "was genuinely terrifying," Byunghui says. "I had the scary thought that this might boost incel communities." Saeyeon describes "anger and even despair" sinking the "hopes I had for politics, which weren't that great to begin with". She believes his popularity "among certain sections of young men is one of the "significant repercussions" of South Korea "long neglecting structural discrimination" against women. The only candidate to address the issue, 61-year-old Kwon Young-gook, didn't fare well in early polling. "I'm still deliberating whether to vote for Lee Jae-myung or Kwon Young-gook," Saeyeon says. While Kwon represents her concerns, she says it's smart to shore up the votes for Lee because she is "much more afraid of the next election, and the one after that". She is thinking about Lee Jun-seok, who some analysts believe could eat into the votes of a beleagured PPP, while appealing to Yoon's base: "He is in the spotlight and as the youngest candidate, he could have a long career ahead." That is all the more reason to keep speaking out, Byunghui says. "It's like there is dust on the wall. If you don't know it's there, you can walk by, but once you see it, it sticks with you." It's the same for Jinha who says things can "never go back to how they were before Yoon declared martial law". That was a time when poliitics felt inaccessible, but now, Jinha adds, it "feels like something that affects me and is important to my life". She says she won't give up because she wants to be free of "things like discrimination at work… and live my life in peace". "People see young women as weak and immature but we will grow up - and then the world will change again." How political chaos helped forge South Korea's presidential frontrunner What you need to know ahead of South Korea's snap presidential election Why South Korean women aren't having babies
BBC News
3 days ago
- General
- BBC News
South Korea elections: They helped oust a president. Now women say they are invisible again
An Byunghui was in the middle of a video game on the night of 3 December when she learned that the South Korean president had declared martial couldn't quite believe it - until the internet blew up with the evidence. The shock announcement from then-president Yoon Suk Yeol, the now-famous shots of soldiers breaking down the windows of the National Assembly and MPs scaling the walls to force their way into the building so they could vote the motion hours, thousands had spurred into protest, especially young women. And Byunghui joined them, travelling hundreds of miles from Daegu in the south-east to the capital turned up not just because Yoon's decision had alarmed and angered them, but to protest against a president who insisted South Korea was free of sexism - despite the deep discrimination and flashes of violence that said returned week after week as the investigation into Yoon's abuse of power went on - and they rejoiced when he was impeached after four dramatic yet, with the country set to elect a new president on 3 June, those very women say they feel invisible two main candidates have been largely silent about equality for women. A polarising subject, it had helped Yoon into power in 2022 as he vowed to defend men who felt sidelined in a world that they saw as too feminist. And a third candidate, who is popular among young men for his anti-feminist stance, has been making many young South Korean women, this new name on the ballot symbolises a new fight."So many of us felt like we were trying to make the world a better place by attending the [anti-Yoon] rallies," the 24-year-old college student says."But now, I wonder if anything has really improved… I can't shake the feeling that they're trying to erase women's voices." The women who turned up against Yoon When Byunghui arrived at the protests, she was struck by the bitter December cold didn't stop tens of thousands of women from gathering. Huddling inside hooded jackets or under umbrellas, waving lightsticks and banners, singing hopeful K-pop numbers, they demanded Yoon's ouster."Most of those around me were young women, we were singing 'Into the World' by Girls' Generation," Byunghui says. Into the World, a hit from 2007 by one of K-pop's biggest acts, became an anthem of sorts in the anti-Yoon rallies. Women had marched to the same song nearly a decade ago in anti-corruption protests that ended another president's career."The lyrics - about not giving up on this world and dreaming of a new world," Byunghui says, "just overwhelmed me. I felt so close to everyone".There are no official estimates of how many of the protesters were young women. Approximately one in three were in their 20s or 30s, according to research by local news outlet Chosun Daily. An analysis by BBC Korean found that women in their 20s were the largest demographic at one rally in December, where there were 200,000 of them - almost 18% of those in attendance. In comparison, there were just over 3% of men in their 20s at that protests galvanised women in a country where discrimination, sexual harassment and even violence against them has long been pervasive, and the gender pay gap - at 31% - is the widest among rich nations. Like in so many other places, plummeting birth rates in South Korea too have upped the pressure on young women to marry and have children, with politicians often encouraging them to play their part in a patriarchal society."I felt like all the frustration that has built up inside me just burst forth," says 23-year-old Kim Saeyeon . "I believe that's why so many young women turned up. They wanted to express all that dissatisfaction."For 26-year-old Lee Jinha, it was the desire to see Yoon go: "I tried to go every week. It wasn't easy. It was incredibly cold, super crowded, my legs hurt and I had a lot of work to do… but it was truly out of a sense of responsibility." That is not surprising, according to Go Min-hee, associate professor of political science at Ewha Women's University, who says Yoon had the reputation of being "anti-feminist" and had "made it clear he was not going to support policies for young women".There were protests on the other side too, backing Yoon and his martial law order. Throughout, many young South Korean men have supported Yoon, who positioned himself as a champion of theirs, mirroring their grievances in his presidential campaign in men consider themselves victims of "reverse discrimination", saying they feel marginalised by policies that favour young women. One that is often cited is the mandatory 18 months they must spend in the military, which they believe puts them at a severe disadvantage compared to label as "man haters" those women who call themselves feminists. And they have been at the heart of a fierce online backlash against calls for greater gender equality. These groups have long existed, mostly out of the public eye. But over the years they moved closer to the mainstream as their traction online grew, especially under was them that Yoon appealed to in his campaign pledges, vowing to abolish the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, saying it focused too much on women's rights. And he consistently denied systemic gender inequality existed in South Korea, which ranks near the bottom on the issue among developed his message hit home. A survey by a local newspaper the year before he was elected had found that 79% of young men in their 20s felt "seriously discriminated against" because of their gender. "In the last presidential election, gender conflict was mobilised by Yoon's party," says Kim Eun-ju, director of the Center for Korean Women and Politics. "They actively strengthened the anti-feminist tendencies of some young men in their 20s."During Yoon's term, she says, government departments or publicly-funded organisations with the word "women" in their title largely disappeared or dropped the reference impact has been polarising. It alienated young women who saw this as a rollback of hard-won rights, even as it fuelled the backlash against saw this up-close back home in Daegu. She says anti-Yoon protests were overwhelmingly female. The few men who came were usually men, she adds, even secondary school students, would often drive past the protests she attended cursing and swearing at them. She says some men even threatened to drive into the crowd."I wondered if they would have acted this way had the protest been led by young men?" The battle to be heard With Yoon gone, his People Power Party (PPP) is in disarray and still reeling from his this is the first time in 18 years that there is no woman among the seven candidates runnning for president. "It's shocking," Jinha says, "that there's no-one". In the last election, there were two women among 14 presidential PPP's Kim Moon-soo is trailing frontrunner Lee Jae-myung, from the main opposition Democratic Party (DP). But young women tell the BBC they have been disappointed by 61-year-old Lee."It's only after criticism that that there were no policies targeting women that the DP began adding a few," Saeyeon says. "I wish they could have drawn a blueprint for improving structural discrimination." When he was asked at the start of his campaign about policies targeting gender inequality, Lee responded: "Why do you keep dividing men and women? They are all Koreans."After drawing critcism, the DP acknowledged that women still "faced structural discrimination in many areas". And it pledged to tackle inequality for women with more resources at every his presidential bid in 2022, Lee was more vocal about the prejudice South Korean women encounter, seeking their votes in the wake of high-profile sexual harassment scandals in his party. He had promised to put women in top positions in the government and appointed a woman as co-chair of the DP's emergency committee."It's evident that the DP is focusing significantly less on young women than they did in the [2022] presidential election," Ms Kim Go believes it's because Lee "lost by a very narrow margin" back then. So this time, he is "casting the widest net possible" for votes. "And embracing feminist issues is not a good strategy for that."That stings for young women like Saeyeon, especially after the role they played in the protests calling for Yoon's impeachment: "Our voices don't seem to be reflected in the [campaign] pledges at all. I feel a bit abandoned." The ruling party's Kim Moon-soo, who served in Yoon's cabinet as labour minister, has emphasised raising birth rates by offering more financial support to parents. But many women say rising costs are not the only obstacle. And that most politicians don't address the deeper inequalities - which make it hard to balance a career and family - that are making so many women reconsider the usual Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, which Yoon had wanted to shut down, has also re-emerged as a sticking has vowed to strengthen the ministry, while Kim says he will replace it with a Ministry of Future Youth and ministry already focuses on family services, education and welfare for children. Just under 7% of its total funding, which is about 0.2% of the government's annual budget, goes towards improving equality for women. But Prof Go says the ministry was "politicised by Yoon and has since been weaponised"."The ministry itself is not huge but it's symbolic… abolishing it would show that gender equality is unimportant." It's also the target of a third candidate, 40-year-old Lee Jun-seok, a former leader of Yoon's party, who has since launched his own Reform trailing Kim in polls, Lee Jun-seok has been especially popular with many young men for his anti-feminist this week, he drew swift outrage after a presidential debate in which he said: "If someone says they want to stick chopsticks in women's genitals or some place like that, is that misogyny?"He said the "someone" was frontunner Lee Jae-myung's son, who he claimed made the comment online, an allegation which the Lee camp has sidestepped, apologising for other controversial watching Lee Jun-seok say that on live TV "was genuinely terrifying," Byunghui says. "I had the scary thought that this might boost incel communities."Saeyeon describes "anger and even despair" sinking the "hopes I had for politics, which weren't that great to begin with".She believes his popularity "among certain sections of young men is one of the "significant repercussions" of South Korea "long neglecting structural discrimination" against women. The only candidate to address the issue, 61-year-old Kwon Young-gook, didn't fare well in early polling."I'm still deliberating whether to vote for Lee Jae-myung or Kwon Young-gook," Saeyeon Kwon represents her concerns, she says it's smart to shore up the votes for Lee because she is "much more afraid of the next election, and the one after that".She is thinking about Lee Jun-seok, who some analysts believe could eat into the votes of a beleagured PPP, while appealing to Yoon's base: "He is in the spotlight and as the youngest candidate, he could have a long career ahead."That is all the more reason to keep speaking out, Byunghui says. "It's like there is dust on the wall. If you don't know it's there, you can walk by, but once you see it, it sticks with you."It's the same for Jinha who says things can "never go back to how they were before Yoon declared martial law". That was a time when poliitics felt inaccessible, but now, Jinha adds, it "feels like something that affects me and is important to my life".She says she won't give up because she wants to be free of "things like discrimination at work… and live my life in peace"."People see young women as weak and immature but we will grow up - and then the world will change again."
CNA
5 days ago
- Business
- CNA
Regionalism still a powerful force in South Korea as it votes for its next president, say experts
BUSAN / GWANGJU: A record number of South Koreans cast their ballots in early voting on Thursday (May 29) and Friday for the upcoming presidential election, with overseas voting figures also reaching a historic high. The snap poll was triggered by former President Yoon Suk Yeol's short-lived declaration of martial law last December, which led to months of political turmoil and his impeachment. Election day is set for next Tuesday. All major polls have placed opposition Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung as the clear front-runner in the presidential race, with a recent Gallup survey showing that 49 per cent of respondents viewed the liberal as the best candidate. Trailing behind him is conservative former labour minister Kim Moon-soo from the ruling People Power Party (PPP) – Mr Yoon's former party – at 35 per cent. As South Korea chooses its next leader, experts said regionalism has eased in the country but remains a powerful force, especially in the south where political divides are deepest. Regionalism refers to a political ideology that favours a region of a country to be more important than the whole. 'Although it's declined compared to the past, especially in places like Busan and South Gyeongsang, it still lingers – particularly in regions like Daegu and North Gyeongsang where support for (PPP) remains strong,' said political science and diplomacy professor Lee Jae-mook from the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. HOW IS REGIONALISM PLAYING A PART? Most of South Korea's presidents hail from Gyeongsang, where military dictator Park Chung-hee – who ruled the country with an iron fist for 18 years – was born. The former leader, who seized power in a coup in 1961, is credited with launching South Korea's economic miracle. Seoul, as well as Gyeongsang where South Korea's second-largest city Busan is located, grew rapidly under his leadership, with major industrial hubs being built in Gyeongsang. But other areas, especially South Jeolla province, remained underdeveloped and largely agricultural. This widened the country's regional divide which persists today. Many South Koreans agree that such uneven economic development under its past leaders is one of the key reasons why Jeolla, known to be a liberal stronghold, has a long-standing rivalry with Gyeongsang, a conservative-leaning area. Prof Lee noted that the sense of regionalism is especially deep in Daegu city in Gyeongsang, also known as Gyeongbuk – the hometown of former President Park Geun-hye, who is also the daughter of Mr Park Chung-hee. "People in Daegu and Gyeongbuk remain loyal to the conservatives, especially after two of the (conservative) presidents – Park Geun-hye and Yoon Suk Yeol – were impeached,' he added. 'When your side's presidents are impeached twice in a row, it strengthens your resolve to defend your political base. That's why these divides are hard to overcome.' The professor said this is also why front-running candidate Mr Lee began his presidential campaign in Gyeongsang. His conservative rival is seen as having an advantage there. Mr Lee's approval rate in North Gyeongsang stands at about 42 per cent, according to recent polls. But separate surveys show that his support in South Gyeongsang has significantly increased, hovering at about 46 per cent in cities like Busan and Ulsan, slightly ahead of his PPP rival's 42 per cent. While residents whom CNA spoke to were divided on who to vote for, some experts said support for conservatives was shaken after Mr Yoon's failed martial law declaration. MEMORIES OF MASSACRE IN LIBERAL JEOLLA Over in Jeolla, experts noted how Mr Yoon's ill-fated effort to impose military rule stirred up dark memories of a brutal fight for democracy decades ago. The southernmost province in South Korea has been a strong supporter of the liberal bloc, especially after troops were sent in to quell protesters in what is now known as the May 18 massacre, or the Gwangju uprising in 1980. Since then, conservative presidential candidates have consistently failed to win votes in Gwangju and the broader Jeolla region – and this is likely to be the case in next week's polls. Prof Lee said: 'It's similar to the way Korean-Japanese relations are. Apologies need to be genuine. No matter how much Japan apologises (for the Japanese colonisation of the Korean peninsula), Koreans often feel it's not sincere enough." 'In the same way, people from Honam (Jeolla region) don't feel that conservative parties have made genuine apologies for past injustices.' Hundreds of people were tortured and killed during the Gwangju uprising, which began a day after martial law was extended by military general Chun Doo-hwan. He had taken power of the country after leading a coup on Dec 12, 1979, following the assassination of then-President Park Chung-hee. The massacre accelerated South Korea's transition to democracy about seven years later. Many in Gwangju told CNA this was why they could not believe their eyes when they watched Mr Yoon declare martial law on television on Dec 3 last year. 'I was overwhelmed, and I had nowhere to express my anger. It was just so absurd and infuriating … I remember seeing bodies covered with blankets on carts being moved through alleys and later in the city,' recounted a Gwangju resident. Another resident, Madam Kim Gil-Ja, said she immediately thought of the uprising when Mr Yoon made the declaration. Her son Moon Jae-hak was one of the youngest victims of the massacre. The 17-year-old was killed on the last day of the uprising during a pre-dawn assault on the South Jeolla provincial government building – the centre of protests against military rule. Mdm Kim said that when she saw troops break the windows of the National Assembly building in Seoul last year and storm inside, she thought to herself: 'This country is in chaos.' 'If I lived closer to Seoul, I would have gone to the National Assembly myself,' she told CNA. At this year's May 18 commemoration, most of the country's presidential hopefuls, including Mr Lee, were present. But PPP's candidate Kim did not turn up after organisers said he was not welcome. Recent polls show Mr Lee with nearly 80 per cent support in Jeolla, including Gwangju, while Mr Kim trails far behind with just 4 per cent. While 50 years have passed since the Gwangju massacre, the wounds remain deep. Whether they will ever fully heal – and whether the people in Jeolla will one day place their trust in a conservative leader – remains uncertain as the country heads to the ballot box.
CNA
5 days ago
- Business
- CNA
How regionalism is shaping politics in South Korea as it gears up for snap presidential election
BUSAN / GWANGJU: A record number of South Koreans cast their ballots in early voting on Thursday (May 29) and Friday for the upcoming presidential election, with overseas voting figures also reaching a historic high. The snap poll was triggered by former President Yoon Suk Yeol's short-lived declaration of martial law last December, which led to months of political turmoil and his impeachment. Election day is set for next Tuesday. All major polls have placed opposition Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung as the clear front-runner in the presidential race, with a recent Gallup survey showing that 49 per cent of respondents viewed the liberal as the best candidate. Trailing behind him is conservative former labour minister Kim Moon-soo from the ruling People Power Party (PPP) – Mr Yoon's former party – at 35 per cent. As South Korea chooses its next leader, experts said regionalism has eased in the country but remains a powerful force, especially in the south where political divides are deepest. Regionalism refers to a political ideology that favours a region of a country to be more important than the whole. 'Although it's declined compared to the past, especially in places like Busan and South Gyeongsang, it still lingers – particularly in regions like Daegu and North Gyeongsang where support for (PPP) remains strong,' said political science and diplomacy professor Lee Jae-mook from the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. HOW IS REGIONALISM PLAYING A PART? Most of South Korea's presidents hail from Gyeongsang, where military dictator Park Chung-hee – who ruled the country with an iron fist for 18 years – was born. The former leader, who seized power in a coup in 1961, is credited with launching South Korea's economic miracle. Seoul, as well as Gyeongsang where South Korea's second-largest city Busan is located, grew rapidly under his leadership, with major industrial hubs being built in Gyeongsang. But other areas, especially South Jeolla province, remained underdeveloped and largely agricultural. This widened the country's regional divide which persists today. Many South Koreans agree that such uneven economic development under its past leaders is one of the key reasons why Jeolla, known to be a liberal stronghold, has a long-standing rivalry with Gyeongsang, a conservative-leaning area. Prof Lee noted that the sense of regionalism is especially deep in Daegu city in Gyeongsang, also known as Gyeongbuk – the hometown of former President Park Geun-hye, who is also the daughter of Mr Park Chung-hee. "People in Daegu and Gyeongbuk remain loyal to the conservatives, especially after two of the (conservative) presidents – Park Geun-hye and Yoon Suk Yeol – were impeached,' he added. 'When your side's presidents are impeached twice in a row, it strengthens your resolve to defend your political base. That's why these divides are hard to overcome.' The professor said this is also why front-running candidate Mr Lee began his presidential campaign in Gyeongsang. His conservative rival is seen as having an advantage there. Mr Lee's approval rate in North Gyeongsang stands at about 42 per cent, according to recent polls. But separate surveys show that his support in South Gyeongsang has significantly increased, hovering at about 46 per cent in cities like Busan and Ulsan, slightly ahead of his PPP rival's 42 per cent. While residents whom CNA spoke to were divided on who to vote for, some experts said support for conservatives was shaken after Mr Yoon's failed martial law declaration. MEMORIES OF MASSACRE IN LIBERAL JEOLLA Over in Jeolla, experts noted how Mr Yoon's ill-fated effort to impose military rule stirred up dark memories of a brutal fight for democracy decades ago. The southernmost province in South Korea has been a strong supporter of the liberal bloc, especially after troops were sent in to quell protesters in what is now known as the May 18 massacre, or the Gwangju uprising in 1980. Since then, conservative presidential candidates have consistently failed to win votes in Gwangju and the broader Jeolla region – and this is likely to be the case in next week's polls. Prof Lee said: 'It's similar to the way Korean-Japanese relations are. Apologies need to be genuine. No matter how much Japan apologises (for the Japanese colonisation of the Korean peninsula), Koreans often feel it's not sincere enough." 'In the same way, people from Honam (Jeolla region) don't feel that conservative parties have made genuine apologies for past injustices.' Hundreds of people were tortured and killed during the Gwangju uprising, which began a day after martial law was extended by military general Chun Doo-hwan. He had taken power of the country after leading a coup on Dec 12, 1979, following the assassination of then-President Park Chung-hee. The massacre accelerated South Korea's transition to democracy about seven years later. Many in Gwangju told CNA this was why they could not believe their eyes when they watched Mr Yoon declare martial law on television on Dec 3 last year. 'I was overwhelmed, and I had nowhere to express my anger. It was just so absurd and infuriating … I remember seeing bodies covered with blankets on carts being moved through alleys and later in the city,' recounted a Gwangju resident. Another resident, Madam Kim Gil-Ja, said she immediately thought of the uprising when Mr Yoon made the declaration. Her son Moon Jae-hak was one of the youngest victims of the massacre. The 17-year-old was killed on the last day of the uprising during a pre-dawn assault on the South Jeolla provincial government building – the centre of protests against military rule. Mdm Kim said that when she saw troops break the windows of the National Assembly building in Seoul last year and storm inside, she thought to herself: 'This country is in chaos.' 'If I lived closer to Seoul, I would have gone to the National Assembly myself,' she told CNA. At this year's May 18 commemoration, most of the country's presidential hopefuls, including Mr Lee, were present. But PPP's candidate Kim did not turn up after organisers said he was not welcome. Recent polls show Mr Lee with nearly 80 per cent support in Jeolla, including Gwangju, while Mr Kim trails far behind with just 4 per cent. While 50 years have passed since the Gwangju massacre, the wounds remain deep. Whether they will ever fully heal – and whether the people in Jeolla will one day place their trust in a conservative leader – remains uncertain as the country heads to the ballot box.
