Moon Landing - The Cheong Wa Dae Curse

Is MOON Jae-in losing it? Is the Cheong Wa Dae curse eventually catching up with him? How much is this weird leadership crisis affecting Korea's future? And to start with, am I sounding a bit too dramatic?

Last year (see "Checks and balances"), I singled out "three disturbingly noxious axes" around which MOON's very character was being questioned:

• is he being too much played by KIM Jong-un? 
• is he letting ideology too much undermine the economy? 
• is he taking too much liberty with separation of powers?

Since then, the least one could say is that MJI did nothing to clear mounting fears around these axes. Worse, the way he's coping with CHO Kuk scandals is now threatening his whole presidency to its very core.

MOON's controversial decision to stop sharing intelligence with Japan as a retaliation to Shinzo Abe's trade war on Korea perfectly illustrates the malaise around all three axes:

• North Korea? Clearly the biggest winner of this decision (not to mention China or Russia, also pleased to see the ROK-US-Japan tripartite alliance weakened in a most sensible part). South Korea has the most to lose as KIM Jong-un's most exposed neighbor, and MOON appears once more as someone eager to seize any alibi to undermine his own country's security in favor of the North.
• The economy? By retaliating on political and military dimensions, MOON plays ABE's hand, and makes it even more difficult to quickly solve an already tricky trade conflict that impacts key parts of Korea's badly weakened economy. If ABE started the trade war as the one shooting himself in the foot ("Japan v. Japan - Artificial Belligerence v. Artificial Intelligence"), MOON not only follows suit, but does so with a bazooka.
• Democracy? Pulling out of 'GSOMIA'* grabs all headlines when MOON needs a diversion from the CHO Kuk scandal. The decision came out of the blue (house), without a proper debate on the impacts.

If this looks bad, what to say of MOON's obstination to support CHO Kuk, his Justice minister nominee?

Every day brings new revelations about CHO's misdeeds. The man who posed as a champion against corruption managed to bring back memories of the two most corrupt characters in the saga that led to PARK Geun-hye's impeachment: like him, CHOI Soon-sil erected an outrageous system to illegally favor her daughter's studies and career, and like him, WOO Byung-woo brought shame on SNU Law School by bending law to destroy justice.

The controversial CHO Kuk

CHO's nomination for justice seems doomed, yet MOON Jae-in keeps supporting him as stubbornly as he does for economic advisers that have like himself no clues about economics, and accelerate a downward spiral ahead of the upcoming global downturn.

The case of CHO is much more serious, and existential for MOON, but all in denial, he doesn't seem to realize what's at stake. Everybody knew he was weak on North Korea and the economy, but failing on the very values that brought him there, on justice, on fairness, on transparency... this is the ultimate betrayal, and the president is already losing his base: recent polls show that a majority of youth have now a negative opinion of him. And Korea University students as well as Seoul National University students are starting to demonstrate following the footsteps of Ewha students, who started the movement that brought down PARK, and set the tone with apolitical approaches, focusing on wrongs to be fixed (CHOI Soon-sil's daughter benefited from illegal support at Ewha, CHO's daughter at KU).


The onus is also on lawmakers from the ruling party, who will have to face the consequences of enabling this mess (if not to face history the way GOP congressmen will for enabling Trump)... but no one wants to be the catalyst before the elections, and the scapegoat for the rout. 

No political leader, left, center, or right, seems to stand out as a credible solution for the future. Could a dangerous populist emerge from the ashes of burned illusions? Korea deserves so much better. It proved so beautifully that it could rise to the highest ideals of democracy.

Of course MOON Jae-in doesn't risk impeachment for defending one rotten apple, but his capacity to run the country could be seriously challenged if he loses all support, further undermining an already weakened nation. So let's hope the President sees reason before it's too late.

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* General Security Of Military Information Agreement

First World Congress for Hallyu

When SEO Taiji's "Nan Alayo" resonates in the middle of the keynote speech, it dawns on you: this truly is a gathering of Hallyu scholars (NB: I owed this trip back to 1992 Korea to ethnomusicologist Keith Howard - SOAS, University of London).

But what does "Hallyu" cover, exactly? Answering the question seems to be the most complex task... or maybe I should write "tusk", since I heard at least two references to the old Indian tale of the blind men and the elephant - the one where each man touches a different part of the animal and describes something completely different from all others.

The organization behind this First World Congress for Hallyu, the World Association for Hallyu Studies, leaves definitions up to scholars, who are encouraged to explore all possibilities. WAHS itself is structured around the following sections: Humanities and social sciences, Korean language education and culture, Medical science, Hallyu policy and management, Sports science, Entertainment business, Tourism, Textile fashion and beauty science, and Food. So during the two-day event held on Korea University campus, topics reached far beyond the usual suspects (K-pop and K-drama*). As well as beyond WAHS's 18 regional branches, the 125 panel participants representing 24 nations and all continents (even Antartica was mentioned - by Stephen Epstein in his focus "below the Equator").

The purpose is not to push Hallyu overseas, but "to advance Hallyu Studies as a multidisciplinary body of knowledge and profession serving the public good" (as the mission statement goes), and ultimately peace and mutual understanding, as WAHS President PARK Gil-sung pointed out in his wrap-up remarks. Significantly, the Grand Prize for the Student Essay Contest was awarded to a Palestinian female student (Maysa Sameer), and the First Prize for the Article Contest went to Dredge Byung'chu Käng (USA) for his paper on "transnational transgender personification in Thai K-pop cover dance".

I wish I could have attended more panels in this rich program, but I'm glad I didn't miss the "Policy Makers" roundtable on the sustainability of Hallyu featuring representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute (KCTI - Ministry of Culture), the Korea Foundation (KF), the Korea Creative Contents Agency (KCCA), the Korea Institute for Design Promotion, the Korea Foundation for International Culture Exchange, the King Sejong Institute Foundation, and KBS Hallyu Promotion Office. What started like a classic, digestive post-lunch series of presentations turned into a lively debate on the most relevant topic - Hallyu's sustainability - when KIM Tae-hwan (Korea Foundation) frankly shared his doubts regarding the future of what appears to be an overblown, short-lived fad marketed as an entertainment commodity, and his wish to see people work on more sustainable approaches. Participants also had passionate discussions around the roles of public diplomacy and of a government often accused of fanning the flames of international hype.

Day 1, Policy Makers Roundtable

Leveraging a network of 200 overseas missions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs collects all positive and negative feedback about the wave to produce a "Current Status of the Global Village" in partnership with the KF, which explains rather low-profile rethorics: yes we support the Korean wave, but we refuse the driver's seat; Hallyu should neither be politicized, nor be seen as a one-way phenomenon disrespectful of other cultures... The posture is less "we have the answers" than "we need to ask more questions": do we know Hallyu? do we overestimate it? do we have to broaden its scope?

The KCTI considers Hallyu as a content by itself, sustainability being only a matter of quality; it's neither in the hands of government, nor a question of public diplomacy, and the leadership is expected from the happy few top content providers... even if YG Entertainment, SM Entertainment, or Cube have more short term preoccupations, around their core activities (contents, convergence...). The KCCA's main worry for the future seems to be replicating the model on new markets, and KBS simply accompanies a dekoreanization process where Hallyu is not even seen as a part of Korean culture... 

Obviously, if the ecosystem seems aware of the need to embrace sustainability, definitions and forward-thinking levels differ a lot. Again, I threw in my two-cents on the issue the following day (see "Heralding cultural diversity: a stronger and more sustainable Korean wave (1st Congress - WAHS)").

Note that the second WAHS congress will be held in Argentina next year, and that Israel will host a second Middle East - WAHS Conference in May 2014 ("The Cultural Geography of the Hallyu: Mapping the World through Korean Popular Culture", following "The 'Miracle' Narrative of the Korean Cultural Industries: Perspectives from the Middle East" - May 2013).

ADDENDUM - read my presentation "Heralding Cultural Diversity: a stronger and more sustainable Korean wave": Part I, Part II, Part III.

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* or "Koreanovelas", as they are known in the Philippines (where they were initially aired in the local language, with Filipino names and soundracks).

Heralding cultural diversity: a stronger and more sustainable Korean wave (1st Congress - WAHS)

On Saturday 19, I'm participating to a panel on Hallyu and Ethics at Korea University for the First Congress of the World Association for Hallyu Studies. My paper is titled "Heralding cultural diversity - a stronger and more sustainable Korean wave", and you can peek at the summary and menu below (bonus: you get an image because you're so kind!).

UPDATE 201404: NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE, SEE PART I, PART II, PART III

Of course I barely scratched the surface of the vast and diverse ocean of Korean culture* but that was the point: Hallyu won't go far if it defines itself as a wave; waves are only means, elements of proof that this ocean is vast, diverse, and alive. And culture is not just about cultural contents but also about how people live, use time and space, not just about cultural sectors but about society at large. 

So yes, good or bad urbanism or business practices also impact the way Korean culture is perceived: typically, Korea cannot herald creativity and diversity overseas if its urbanism negates them at home, and cases of abusive contracts and working conditions in K-pop industry exposed by Western journalists who came to investigate the phenomenon in Korea hurt much more than the classic criticisms denouncing a 'culture industry'. This year's agreement on a standard labor contract across the movie industry to end a long tradition of film crew exploitation marks an excellent trend, and my piece is optimistic because going ethic is not only the only option, but good business.

Learning from nature and wave dynamics: waves are a bit like the tip of the iceberg, except everything is moving (moving as in 'movement' and 'emotions', with an infinite variety of facets and paces). Note the vocabulary similarities with marketing campaigns, which also often come in waves.

Heralding cultural diversity - a stronger and more sustainable Korean wave:

Summary:

"Korea can fulfill its potential as a cultural leader, become a positive role model, and ensure durable success beyond short-lived fads. And because true leaders cannot be respected if they are not respectful, this cannot happen without understanding how wave dynamics work in nature, without a resolute ethical and sustainable approach of the ecosystem at home and abroad, and without embracing cultural diversity. Making more room for smaller players and indie creations, developing fairer revenue sharing models will not only ensure sustainability and benefit all players, but also help raise the nation’s image overseas."

• Understanding wave dynamics – learning from nature

• Defining waves: always bear in mind that waves are disturbances
• Defining Hallyu: a simple wave, a current, or a vast ocean?
• Revealing a vast ocean in movement? Easier than carving every day the perfect wave

• Respecting cultural diversity – at home and abroad

• This is not a competition, this is not a “Clash of Cultures”
• Think nurturing beyond preserving: don’t build seawalls, grow mangroves!
• Diversity is the key to sustainability, ‘consistent’ doesn’t mean ‘constant’

• Nurturing an ethical, open, and fair ecosystem – showcasing cultural leadership

• Free creative forces across the nation and beyond, liberate time and space
• Economic leaders must act as true cultural leaders, open up and embrace change
• Most exposed at the crest of the wave, ‘cultural sectors’ must lead as role models

The spirit of Hallyu

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* and only a few issues raised in this excuse for a blog about it - e.g. for content verticals in"Saving Korean cinema... and even Chaebolplex", "Korean culture or Hallyu, Cultural contents or discontents", "DMC aims at Tinseltown - welcome to Hallyuwood !", ""...