It's a charge both
the ruling and opposition parties have faced since election season
began: Unrealistic campaign promises, with little regard for how to pay
for them or their long-term consequences, point to one thing ― populism.
Last month, a group of business organizations including the Federation of Korean Industries released a joint statement cautioning against reckless pledges at election time.
"Campaign pledges should be tailored to reflect the current economic environment facing the country and the government's fiscal capabilities,woolrich coyote parka" the statement warned.
The Saenuri Party's list of pledges for the April 11 election includes additional spending of 89 trillion won ($79 billion) on welfare, health and education over the next five years. The opposition Democratic United Party is pledging 164.7 trillion won in similar spending over the same time frame.
A recent "conservative" estimate by the Finance Ministry put the cost of implementing all the two main parties' pledges at 268 trillion won, considerably above either party's own estimate.
Other pledges accused of being populist include both parties' commitment to build an airport in the southeast of the country, the DUP's vow to abandon nuclear energy and the Saenuri Party's to quadruple the monthly wage given to military conscripts.
Challenging such perceived electoral pandering with gusto,Discount Fjallraven Parka Jacket Online the Maeil Business, a vernacular daily, even published the so-called Maekyung Populism Index as part of its "monitoring mission against populist policies."
International attention, too, has honed in on the issue, with a March 7 Wall Street Journal editorial praising Finance Minister Bahk Jae-wan for having "the guts to stand up to such economic populism."
Unsurprisingly, the political establishment has rejected the charges.
"The timing of it all is the real give away. Nothing in society has changed all that drastically. There were always the poor. There were always the rich. And every year, for the past decade at least, Korea has reached a new level of affluence. So, why this push all of a sudden?" he said.
But pledges to, for example, increase welfare spending shouldn't automatically be labeled populist, especially,Discount Woolrich Jackets Friedhoff said, as they reflect very real public demand.
"Korea has a weak safety net, that is not in question. Moreover, according to the Asan Institute's survey, the issue of redistribution has been the second most important, after job creation, for the past twelve months. The issue of redistribution and the economy are clearly linked. There are three measurements for the economy. The first is absolute … The second is relative … The final way is the one less talked about: perceived growth.
"So, people hear that the Korean economy is growing. But when we ask them in our survey about how they feel about their own personal economic well-being, a majority perceive their own economic well-being to be getting worse. And that has been true since we started the poll in January 2011."
Cho Heung-seek, a politician science professor at Seoul National University, said that populism in Korea politics is nothing new, but is characterized by some distinctly local features.
But if populist rhetoric is nothing new, Moon Seung-sook, a Korean-born-and-raised sociology professor at Vassar University in New York State, sees this election as noteworthy for how the debate on populism has been framed.
She adds, however, that Koreans may be more sensitive to disparities in wealth than citizens of other countries, giving impetus to party plans to raise taxes on the wealthy and curb chaebol power.
"I see such emphasis as an example of populism in contemporary mass democracy, which we also see a lot here in U.S. politics.canada goose jackets If I look hard into the Korean culture and history, Koreans may be more sensitive to inequality and status differences ― than Americans for example ― because of relatively strong nationalism and belief in homogenous ethnicity ― especially among older generations."
During the campaign for last October's Seoul mayoral by-election, conservative candidate Na Kyung-won of the Grand National Party, the former name of the Saenuri Party, faced criticism over what were later revealed to be false accusations of lavish spending on skin care. President Lee came in for similarly-themed attacks when his granddaughter was photographed wearing an expensive Moncler band jacket during a family outing with the president.
Widespread dissatisfaction with established politics has surely been fuel for the populist impulse. But such antipathy could find an outlet divorced from party politics entirely, believes Friedhoff. He sees youth disillusionment in particular as potentially transformative ― even more so in the event of a conservative electoral victory.
"Their dissatisfaction is real and it doesn't really have any outlet. Where that energy will be directed is difficult to say. But, I think if the (Saenuri Party) is somehow able to win a narrow majority, the disappointment and frustration of the youth is going to be more than anyone expected. And again, how that frustration will express itself is anyone's guess. … It could be in an outward form, i.e. protests. Or it could be a more internal movement, where those in their twenties just see no way to have their voice heard, and effectively give up on the democratic process.cheap Peak Performance Jacket"
Last month, a group of business organizations including the Federation of Korean Industries released a joint statement cautioning against reckless pledges at election time.
"Campaign pledges should be tailored to reflect the current economic environment facing the country and the government's fiscal capabilities,woolrich coyote parka" the statement warned.
The Saenuri Party's list of pledges for the April 11 election includes additional spending of 89 trillion won ($79 billion) on welfare, health and education over the next five years. The opposition Democratic United Party is pledging 164.7 trillion won in similar spending over the same time frame.
A recent "conservative" estimate by the Finance Ministry put the cost of implementing all the two main parties' pledges at 268 trillion won, considerably above either party's own estimate.
Other pledges accused of being populist include both parties' commitment to build an airport in the southeast of the country, the DUP's vow to abandon nuclear energy and the Saenuri Party's to quadruple the monthly wage given to military conscripts.
Challenging such perceived electoral pandering with gusto,Discount Fjallraven Parka Jacket Online the Maeil Business, a vernacular daily, even published the so-called Maekyung Populism Index as part of its "monitoring mission against populist policies."
International attention, too, has honed in on the issue, with a March 7 Wall Street Journal editorial praising Finance Minister Bahk Jae-wan for having "the guts to stand up to such economic populism."
Unsurprisingly, the political establishment has rejected the charges.
"The timing of it all is the real give away. Nothing in society has changed all that drastically. There were always the poor. There were always the rich. And every year, for the past decade at least, Korea has reached a new level of affluence. So, why this push all of a sudden?" he said.
But pledges to, for example, increase welfare spending shouldn't automatically be labeled populist, especially,Discount Woolrich Jackets Friedhoff said, as they reflect very real public demand.
"Korea has a weak safety net, that is not in question. Moreover, according to the Asan Institute's survey, the issue of redistribution has been the second most important, after job creation, for the past twelve months. The issue of redistribution and the economy are clearly linked. There are three measurements for the economy. The first is absolute … The second is relative … The final way is the one less talked about: perceived growth.
"So, people hear that the Korean economy is growing. But when we ask them in our survey about how they feel about their own personal economic well-being, a majority perceive their own economic well-being to be getting worse. And that has been true since we started the poll in January 2011."
Cho Heung-seek, a politician science professor at Seoul National University, said that populism in Korea politics is nothing new, but is characterized by some distinctly local features.
But if populist rhetoric is nothing new, Moon Seung-sook, a Korean-born-and-raised sociology professor at Vassar University in New York State, sees this election as noteworthy for how the debate on populism has been framed.
She adds, however, that Koreans may be more sensitive to disparities in wealth than citizens of other countries, giving impetus to party plans to raise taxes on the wealthy and curb chaebol power.
"I see such emphasis as an example of populism in contemporary mass democracy, which we also see a lot here in U.S. politics.canada goose jackets If I look hard into the Korean culture and history, Koreans may be more sensitive to inequality and status differences ― than Americans for example ― because of relatively strong nationalism and belief in homogenous ethnicity ― especially among older generations."
During the campaign for last October's Seoul mayoral by-election, conservative candidate Na Kyung-won of the Grand National Party, the former name of the Saenuri Party, faced criticism over what were later revealed to be false accusations of lavish spending on skin care. President Lee came in for similarly-themed attacks when his granddaughter was photographed wearing an expensive Moncler band jacket during a family outing with the president.
Widespread dissatisfaction with established politics has surely been fuel for the populist impulse. But such antipathy could find an outlet divorced from party politics entirely, believes Friedhoff. He sees youth disillusionment in particular as potentially transformative ― even more so in the event of a conservative electoral victory.
"Their dissatisfaction is real and it doesn't really have any outlet. Where that energy will be directed is difficult to say. But, I think if the (Saenuri Party) is somehow able to win a narrow majority, the disappointment and frustration of the youth is going to be more than anyone expected. And again, how that frustration will express itself is anyone's guess. … It could be in an outward form, i.e. protests. Or it could be a more internal movement, where those in their twenties just see no way to have their voice heard, and effectively give up on the democratic process.cheap Peak Performance Jacket"
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