Park 2 Day 1 in pictures

After 2 ROHs, 2 KIMs, and 1 LEE, I woke up with my first President PARK this morning*. The second one for many Koreans, who still now define PARK Geun-hye as "the daughter of".

The daughter of whom? Of PARK Chung-hee, of course. But the daughter of what, exactly? Of a "dictator", confirmed the BBC today, along with most international media. Of a "strongman", according to the guidelines suggested by conservative PR outlets in Korea... guidelines followed by the TIME editors, who controversially changed their December 17 cover, initially planned with the "D" word:

One thing is sure: the officials in charge of her inauguration in Yeouido could have picked a better TV background for the swear-in moment than this unsmiling Westerner with sunglasses, like a Man In Black keeping an eye on some valuable CIA asset. Even if Secretary of State John Kerry skipped the event, NK propagandists will probably photoshop a puppeteer hand out of this dark background:

Worse: if you enlarge the picture, you get Yingluck Shinawatra, a person mostly known as Taksin Shinawatra's sister, even now that she is Thailand's Prime Minister, a job she owes only to this familial tie:

So you'll probably see many official pictures framed, like this AP shot, in a tight close-up...

... unless PR wizzards opt for this picture, taken later in the day, during PARK's surrealistic stop at Gwanghwamun Square, on her way to Cheong Wa Dae:

photo Yonhap News

 
Here, the new president opened a giant purse, revealing a teletubbiesque tree of hope from which she randomly picked of low hanging fruits: wishes for a better welfare written by Korean citizens. She read a couple of them aloud, like a mom would do with poems from her kids, before rushing back to her stretch limo, as if last year's campaign never ended, with its "daughter/mother of the nation" positioning**, and its incessant succession of symbolic photo ops (eg below the tightest close up I shot from the future president - "Park Geun-hye bballi bballi campaigning" - October 2012 on SeoulVillage's YouTube channel):



 
PARK made one last stop (in front of Cheongwadae Sarangchae, welcomed by traditional music and friendly neighbors from Cheongun-dong and Hyoja-dong), before going back to where it all began: a Blue House where cameras followed her all the way up the grand staircase.
 

 
On this Oscar night and in spite of the hanbok, Park Geun-hye did much better than Jennifer Lawrence. Apparently, no Clark Gable was waiting for her. Anyway, time to lower the curtain and to get to work.

A reframed picture, a colorful tree, a big red staircase... of course these reductive images are not all there is to remember from such a historic day. There were also political messages, as expected focused on the 3 elephants in nowaday's Korean corridor: North Korea (the "biggest victim" from its own nuclear test), economy, and welfare.

But still** as this stage, we can't tell for sure who the person known as "the daughter of" truly is, and what she will eventually be remembered as.


Seoul Village 2013
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* technically, one should add GOH Kun, who was acting president during ROH Moo-hyun's impeachment in 2004.
** see "The Anipang Election: Park wins big, but who won?"

OH Se-hoon V2.0

After a long night, Seoul Mayor OH Se-hoon was confirmed for a second term, finishing a few thousand ballots ahead of HAN Myeong-sook (47%+ vs 47%-), but with spectacular differences depending on age brackets : HAN ruled over the younger generations and OH over older citizens (no overall voting gender gap).

As expected, an asymetrical campaign opposed an incumbent focusing on his city and a national champion positioning herself in the footsteps of the late President ROH Moo-hyun and against President LEE Myung-bak. The Cheonan tragedy was not really an issue in the last days, when KIM Jong-il faded in the background (a cameo appearance on time for the G20, maybe ?). HAN almost won thanks to a last minute rally leveraging on her base of young voters, and a weaker mobilization in the conservative camp. Overall, the turnout was better than expected, and the weather as sunny as it should be in early June.

At the end of the day - well... the beginning, indeed -, both champions won : OH remains the Mayor, and HAN's Democratic Party (Minju Dang) claims the bulk of Seoul's 25 "gu"*, leaving only Jungnang-gu and LEE's traditional base of haves and have mores (Seocho-gu, Gangnam-gu, Songpa-gu, the latest by the tiniest margin as the real estate bubble keeps deflating) to the ruling conservative Grand National Party (Hanara Dang). To add insult to the injury for the GNP, GWAK No-hyeon (Dem) defeated LEE Won-heui (Con) in the race to the top job for education in Seoul.

Actually, this political cohabitation may suit OH Se-hoon's progressive agenda : he is not exactly a divisive figure, except precisely for the conservative base of real estate speculators who were not very found of his push in favor of a more sustainable development**. And OH would be more than happy to see Seoul's educational system undermine hagwonocracy and restore some of the meritocracy that made the Hangang miracle possible. And to deliver his ambitious promise : Seoul gained 15 places in World capital rankings during his first term (from 27th to 15th), and he pledged to reach the 5th spot by the end of his second mandate.

Easier said than done, but hey, that's politics, and Korean politics at that...

Anyway, for the first time*** Seoul reelected its Mayor, and some continuity won't hurt international recognition.

Seoul Village 2010

* unlike Paris, where voters elect district teams who then decide of the Mayor, such a cohabitation is possible in Seoul since 1995 and the introduction of direct elections for the Metropolitan Mayor.
** even if much remains to be done (ie hanok preservation)
*** GOH Kun served twice but as an appointed Mayor (1988-90 and 1998-2002)

GOH Kun to head social unity council

Seoul Village 2009 - Today, President LEE Myung-bak officially named GOH Kun head of a 48-member social unity committee (or social integration / 사회통합) to be formed on Wednesday.

This former Mayor of Seoul has been Korea's Head of State but never President, and theoretically will never be : Goh only served as interim leader during ROH Moo-hyun's impeachment process back in 2004. He didn't enter the 2007 Presidential race and officially retired from political life. Besides, Goh will be 74 in 2012...

But after losing former presidents ROH Moo-hyun and KIM Dae-jung*, Korean opposition lacks senior figures, and this man was twice Mayor of Seoul (1988-1990 and 1998-2002) and twice Prime Minister (for the recently departed : in 1997-98 under KIM and in 2003-04 under ROH).

Goh refused twice before accepting Lee's proposal. He is not pledging allegiance to a man, but embracing a noble cause, in explicit "political neutrality" : the council aims at healing political divides which have rather increased than decreased lately, many fingers pointing towards Lee himself.

Appointing opposition figures as heads of consensual committees is a Sarkozish move if I ever saw one, but Goh may actually be given room for manoeuvre : very much like Prime Minister Chung Un-chan was drafted to handle the Sejong City hot potato**, this statesman can implement highly needed changes which could hurt Lee's relationship with his most conservative base. Yes, that may even include a follow up for TRCK recommandations : reconciliation is all about social unity. Bonus : Seoul-born Goh has deep Jeolla-do roots and is totally legitimate to fix Korea's regional divide.

An ambitious program... and don't write that one "MBtious" !


* see "Kim Dae-jung - the Commander's Statue", "A Yellow Sea for Roh Moo-hyun", "Roh Moo-hyun follows Pierre Beregovoy"
** see "Sejong City and the beauty of lameduckhood"