Korea Digest No. 3 June, 2023

KOREA DIGEST

Korea Digest is a monthly publication of the Korea Centre, School of International Relations and Politics, Mahatma Gandhi University, that compiles major political, security, economic and diplomatic developments in the Korean Peninsula. Korea Digest aims to track, highlight and provide brief analysis of important developments in the Korean Peninsula for the Indian audience.

Korea Digest No. 3 June, 2023

 

 

Contents

  1. ICRC is ready to resume activities in DPRK as soon as access is granted by the state authorities.
  2. South Korea and Poland to expand defense cooperation
  3. Rising tension against Yoon administration by the unionists
  4. North Korea to reaffirm strong cooperation with Russia
  5. South Korea in a transition to international age counting method
  6. South Korea condemns the Chinese Ambassador’s remark as an intrusion in foreign policy.
  7. Major reshuffle in South Korea’s state administration
  8. South Korean President’s state visit to Vietnam
  9. The path towards same-sex marriage remains shackled in South Korea

 

Prepared by

Mirash Cherian Kurian, Research Associate, Korea Centre

 

  1. ICRC READY TO RESUME ACTIVITIES IN DPRK AS SOON AS ACCESS IS GRANTED BY THE STATE AUTHORITIES

Olivier Ray, director for mobilisation, movement, and partnership at the International Committee of the Red Cross, mentioned during an interview given to Yonhap News Agency that the ICRC is ready to resume humanitarian assistance and projects that were suspended amidst the spread of COVID-19. He also stated that the organisation has contact with the Red Cross community in the DPRK but not with the state authorities. Ray conveyed that they are willing to reengage their operations in North Korea as soon as the North Korean administration grants access. The Red Cross community is one of the oldest humanitarian organisations, having started its activities in North Korea in 2002. There was a high level of tension on the Korean peninsula as North Korea tried to launch a military spy satellite, which failed, triggering air raid sirens in South Korea and Japan.

Regarding these issues, the ICRC has sworn to remain actively neutral and to introduce trained surge teams if needed. The director also expressed his gratitude to South Korea for its contribution of 10 million Swiss francs last year. He also added that South Korea, as an emerging economic power, has much more to offer the international community in the fields of humanitarian development and peace nexus, responsible use of artificial intelligence, and international humanitarian law. The ICRC can be considered as the “first ones in and last ones out”, stated Olivier Ray, who worked as the senior advisor on global affairs for French President Emmanuel Macron.

 

  1. SOUTH KOREA AND POLAND TO EXPAND DEFENSE COOPERATION

The defence chiefs of South Korea and Poland have decided to expand and strengthen defence cooperation by signing an MoU between the two countries to establish a joint Korean-Polish committee on cooperation in defense and defence industries. Both countries also discussed ways to conduct military-to-military exchanges and combined military exercises. Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak and his South Korean counterpart Lee Jong-sup met at Sacheon. Poland is considered South Korea’s largest arms market. Last year, South Korean defense contractors signed contracts with a value of $12.4 billion, which include military tanks, light attack aircraft, rocket launchers, and howitzers. Another aspect of this agreement between South Korea and Poland is that it might trigger Russian fury against South Korea as the arms exported to Poland by South Korea may be used against Russia by Ukraine, in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, since Poland gives arms and ammunition to Ukraine. Earlier, Russia threatened South Korea with what South Korean citizens might feel if they saw Russian-made arms and weapons on the premises of North Korea, their neighbour. Russia also argues that South Korea still acts as a puppet in the hands of the USA.

 

  1. RISING TENSION AGAINST YOON ADMINISTRATION BY THE UNIONISTS

The hostile relationship between the South Korean government and the labor force has stepped to the next level as the unionists took their concerns to the ILO. The leaders of two labor unions- Federation of Korean Trade Unions and the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, met the ILO delegates at Geneva. Yang Kyeung-soo, the President of KCTU, said that the labor-management relationship is under strain and is at its worst in three decades. He also urged Gilbert Houngbo, who is the Director General of the ILO, to take necessary action against the South Korean government. FKTU leader Ryu Ki-seop complained about the management friendly policies of the Yoon administration, such as workweek extensions and granting the employer the complete liberty to appoint another worker in place of a person who did a walkout as a protest, in which all these policies can be seen as anti-labor ones. At the same time, a Korean business lobby also participated in the conference, denying all the claims by the labor unions. From the beginning, South Korean President Yoon has taken a hard stance against labor unions. As of now, the Yoon administration is trying to minimize the damage by saying that the protest by unionists is wrong by pressing the gray legal area regarding the assemblies after sunset and before sunrise as ‘unconstitutional’. In November 2022, there was a trucker’s strike demanding minimum permanent freight rates, which resulted in a $2.4 billion loss to the country because of the broken supply chain due to the protest.

 

  1. NORTH KOREA TO REAFFIRM STRONG COOPERATION WITH RUSSIA

North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui has sent regards to her Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov on the occasion of Russia Day and pledged stronger cooperation between North Korea and Russia. Despite international condemnation of Russia’s war with Ukraine, North Korea has already extended its support to Russia and also faces aligation regarding sending arms to Moscow. The North Korean Foreign Minister also highlighted strategic and tactical cooperation in the field of diplomacy. Earlier, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un himself had sent his wishes to Russian President Vladimir Putin on the 78th anniversary of the victory in the ‘Great Patriotic War’.

 

  1. SOUTH KOREA IN A TRANSITION TO INTERNATIONAL AGE COUNTING METHOD

South Korea to replace the traditional East Asian method of age counting and to adopt international norms. In the former way of reckoning age, an infant is considered one year old at the time of birth since the time spent inside the womb is calculated as the 1st year of childhood. Thus, South Korea became the final country to let go of the old system, as Japan dropped this system in 1950 and China hasn’t used the traditional East Asian method of age counting since Mao’s Cultural Revolution. North Korea adopted the international standard of age counting in the 1980s. The new method will come into existence on June 28, 2023. Integration of the South Korean age system with the international arena was Yoon Suk Yeol’s election campaign vow. Many Korean citizens who are in their 40s and 50s are very eager to get back into their ‘younger age’. Age or seniority plays a prominent role in Korean culture and hierarchy, as this determines the level of respect and the way in which each of them addresses each other. Jocelyn Clark, who teaches at Pai Chai University, believes that “law is law, culture is culture,” and all these changes in the Korean age system won’t affect the local culture. To avoid a mess, schools are showing educational materials that explain that the way of counting age has been unified. However, there are certain exceptions in the new system, which include the the legal age for the consumption of tobacco and alcohol will remain the same as the old one and will still be calculated on the basis of the year of birth. The conscription for men, which comes under the Military Service Act, will happen when they reach the age of 18. This too won’t change. The way in which Koreans adapt to this significant change is yet to be determined.

 

  1. SOUTH KOREA CONDEMNS CHINESE AMBASSADOR’S REMARKS AS AN INTRUSION IN FOREIGN POLICY

The Chinese ambassador to South Korea, Xing Haiming, was summoned by First Foreign Minister Chang Ho-jin to express the government’s dissatisfaction for criticising South Korea’s foreign policy publicly during a meeting with Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, the main opposition party in South Korea. In this meeting, Xing expressed his disappointment with the current foreign policy of the South Korean government.  He also blamed South Korea for worsening the relationship with China. Xing also made a provocative statement, which goes, “Some are betting that the US will win and China will lose, but this is clearly a misjudgment. I can confirm that those who bet on China’s defeat at this moment will surely regret it “. Chang said that criticising their government policy without intolerance and false information is against the standards set by the Vienna Convention and also an intervention into South Korean domestic affairs. South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin also commended that the role of an ambassador is to promote friendship, not spread misunderstanding. This is the second time the same Chinese Ambassador has been summoned by the Yoon administration. The White House also expressed its view on the issue. John Kirby, National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications, argued that China may be trying to use pressure tactics on Seoul. He also added that South Korea is a sovereign, independent nation that has every right to form its own foreign policy, which seems appropriate.

  1. MAJOR RESHUFFLE IN SOUTH KOREA’S STATE ADMINISTRATION

The South Korean administration undergoes several changes after President Yoon Suk Yeol reaches his second year in office. He nominated a new unification minister, Kim Yong ho, who worked as a Political Science professor at Sungshin University. He also replaced 12 vice ministers across 11 ministers.  According to Kim Dae-ki, the Chief of Staff to the South Korean President, appointing a hardliner as a Unification Minister will bring change that benefits South Korean political desires. He also added that it would bring a  principled North Korean policy and a consistent unification strategy. Yoon also appointed Kim Hong-il as the head of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission, who previously worked as the chief of Busan’s high prosecutor’s office. The ministries of science, foreign affairs, finance, culture, agriculture, and transportation are other ministries that underwent shuffles. The shuffle is made according to the president’s philosophy of state affairs, said an anonymous official in Yoon’s office. The chairperson post at the Korea Communications Commission remains unfilled.

  1. SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENT’S STATE VISIT TO VIETNAM

President Yoon Suk Yeol made his first bilateral visit to Vietnam for a three-day visit that focused on expanding economic cooperation. This is the first time Yoon has visited an ASEAN member nation. A summit was held between Yoon and Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong, which discussed the strategic partnership between Seoul and Hanoi. There were talks between the Prime Minister of Vietnam, Pham Minh Chinh, and Vuong Dinh Hue, the chairperson of Vietnam’s national assembly. The General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Nguyen Phu Trong, also took part in a meeting with the South Korean President. Vietnam is considered South Korea’s 3rd largest trading partner. A 205-member business delegation that includes representatives of Samsung, LG, Hyundai, etc. An improved and healthier relationship between Seoul and Hanoi will be helpful to the respective companies, as their activities in China are facing many restrains due to the conflict between Beijing and Washington. Thus, Vietnam may benefit from acting as an alternative to China. Seoul will expect more of an economic partnership, like defence cooperation. There is heavy hope among Korean military contractors, for the deals of exporting weapons to Vietnam, as Vietnam is on a path of military modernization, and they also plan to reduce their dependence on Russia for weapon imports, as about 70% of Vietnam’s military imports are from Russia.

  1. THE PATH TOWARDS SAME-SEX MARRIAGE REMAINS SHACKLED IN SOUTH KOREA

South Korea remains polarised on the view of same-sex marriage. There is progress in the mindset of people, but this happens at a slow pace. 34 countries around the world have recognized same-sex marriage by granting it legal status, while in Korea this hasn’t happened yet. In Taiwan, the state administration even gives adoption rights to same-sex couples. Japan, a neighboring country of South Korea, maintains a position of “unconstitutionality” on the issue. There is no clause in the Korean constitution that specifies whether two people of the same sex can marry or not. In 2013, movie director Kim-Jho Gwang-soo and film distributor Kim Seung-hwan, a gay couple who publicly married, moved to court to recognize their marriage but lose the case in 2016. The condition of the LGBTQ+ community is so ‘uncared’ as there is no official record of how many people fall under it. Cha Hae-young, who is a district council member, says that Korea is still a country that operates within a family-oriented culture. The conservative opposing authorities often face the LGBTQ+ movement with rhetoric and actions. In recent times in Daegu province, there has been physical wrangling between city officials and the police over the ‘Pride Parade’. Similarly, Seoul’s municipal administration also denied permission to conduct a pride parade. Without an official record, it is very difficult to assess the condition of sexual minorities and provide the necessary aid and support to them.

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