South Korea’s Democracy Crisis

A Right-wing Government Stumbles in Asia

There’s an uprising in progress across the Pacific. Martial law has been declared in South Korea by President Yoon Suk Yeol. There are spooky parallels coinciding with conjectures about our next president jettisoning democracy. Pay attention.

In an unannounced late night TV appearance on Tuesday, President Yoon declared an “emergency martial law” on Tuesday, accusing the country’s opposition of controlling the parliament, sympathizing with North Korea and paralyzing the government with anti-state activities.

He vowed to “eradicate pro-North Korean forces and protect the constitutional democratic order... I will eliminate anti-state forces as quickly as possible and normalize the country,” he said, while asking the people to believe in him and tolerate “some inconveniences”.

Members of the national assembly were banned from entering the building, with the South Korean military having reportedly announced the suspension of all parliamentary activities.

Special forces utilizing buses blockaded the National Assembly building in an effort to keep legislators from voting on a bill to lift the lockdown. They failed, and the vote for ending martial law was unanimous.

Late breaking reports say the military has retreated, with some saying riot police are gathering.

Earlier this year, the Swedish V-Dem Institute reported the country was dropping in their ‘liberal democracy index,’ due to actions taken by Yoon, who they described as “South Korea’s Donald Trump.”

Comparisons between the incoming US President and Yoon don’t completely align because South Korea’s politics, culture, and history as a democracy are different from ours in many ways.

The commonality lies in that both leaders were elected as part of a far right push. South Korea is two years into the rightist regime, and people are broadly unhappy with the results. Scandal after scandal after scandal have engulfed the government and its leader. Yoon has used his veto power 25 times, including blocking investigations about his wife engaging in stock manipulation.

Myung Tae-Kyun Gate is the mother of all scandals in the Yoon era since it alleges bogus polls were conducted with the aim of influencing election narratives during the 2022 presidential campaign. The opposition Democratic Party leak a recording of a phone call implicating the South Korean President discussing influencing the choices voters would be seeing in the general election.

Beyond the scandals, there has been widespread criticism for systemic failures in governance, including inadequacies in public safety and systemic abuses and negligence within the military. Yoon has repeatedly vetoed special prosecutor legislation enabling investigations into the actions of senior officials who are widely believed to have been involved.

Yoon’s administration has also faced allegations of undermining press freedom by targeting journalists and media outlets critical of the government.

From Wikipedia:

• A hot mic incident reported on by an MBC journalist resulted in a police raid on the journalist's home and a retaliatory banning of MBC from access to Yoon. Other similar raids on the homes of journalists have been conducted, with the justification of criminal defamation against Yoon. Outlets that have aligned with Yoon have reportedly received preferential treatment.

It should surprise exactly nobody that there is unhappiness about tax cuts favoring the wealthy having been accompanied by budget cuts to social safety net programs. The country’s health care system is in crisis due to budget cuts and a shortage of medical staff.

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Japan’s brutal and inhuman occupation of Korea (1910-1945) has left deep scars in the country’s psyche. In addition to suppressing the native tongue and making off with historical treasure, the Japanese “requisitioned” 5.4 million Koreans during WWII. Most were forced to labor in unsafe workplaces to support the Japanese war effort. As many as 100,000 Korean women were forced into the military’s comfort women program, where individuals were raped up to 40 times a day. Records on this program indicate the women were listed as ‘military supplies’ in unit inventories.

As a result of the legacy of Japanese occupation, their relations with South Korea have been on the restrained side. The one exception to this attitude is the "far-right" Japanophilic New Right movement which is reported to be in a close relationship with the Yoon Suk Yeol government.

According to a report by Kyunghyang Shinmun, at least 21 New Right figures were found, holding 25 key positions in eight public institutions and committees related to Korean history under the Yoon's administration. In case you haven’t gathered, the New Right Movement has no problem with the history of Japanese occupation of their country.

Yoon’s approval rate among the population has fallen to 25%. In 2023 he attempted to raise South Korea's maximum weekly working hours from 52 to 69. The proposal failed following massive public protests.

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Finally, in drawing parallels to the MAGA agenda, the South Korean leader has been accused of exploiting anti-feminist sentiment for political gain. He says structural sexism no longer exists in South Korea, and ran for office pledging to abolish the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family.

The government has further reversed the progress of women’s rights in Korea by removing “gender equality” as a term in school textbooks. (Sound familiar?)

In the aftermath of Donald Trump’s reelection, American media reports are suggesting Korea’s 4B movement is taking hold in the United States. Based on four Korean words that start with the letter B − it’s led by women protesting the country’s rampant misogyny, gender-based violence and discrimination. They’re reclaiming their autonomy by refusing heterosexual marriage (“bihon”), childbirth (“bichulsan”), dating (“biyeonae”) and sex (“bisekseu”).

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Heesoo Jang, Assistant Professor of Media Law and Ethics, Journalism Department, University of Massachusetts Amherst has issued a statement critical of the superficial coverage of South Korea’s turmoil being presented in mainstream media.

It concludes:

• Despite the scale of unrest, international media have failed to convey the full significance of this crisis. Instead of contextualizing public discontent and the erosion of democratic norms, they have focused on peripheral issues, ignoring the protests’ broader implications for democracy. This has also allowed misinformation to muddy the narrative internationally, preventing the international public from gaining important contextual information about what’s happening in South Korea. For example, posts on Chinese social media have falsely portrayed the protests as anti-war rallies rather than demands for accountability and reform.

• South Korea’s struggle is a powerful reminder that democracy is not self-sustaining—it requires active vigilance. The protests and demands for reform exemplify how civil society can confront governance failures. The world deserves more context and a nuanced understanding from international journalism about what South Korean democracy is facing, as its fight for justice, transparency, and the rule of law holds lessons for all democracies.

He’s right, of course. Americans ought to pay special attention to this situation as it unfolds, a scenario is playing out that could easily resemble future actions by the 47th President of the United States.

As recently as three months ago, Chun In-bum, who served as a lieutenant general of the ROK Army and commander of Special Forces Korea was editorializing in The Korea Times about the strength of South Korea’s institutions in the face of something resembling the presently developing situation.

• The current accusations against the Yoon administration, suggesting a potential "palace coup" or the preparation for martial law, are emerging against a backdrop of severe political polarization and public distrust. Critics argue that recent appointments of military leaders closely associated with President Yoon's network could be a move to consolidate power over key security institutions. These accusations are fueled by conspiracy theories, often spread on social media, that suggest an orchestrated effort to undermine democratic processes.

• While these theories lack substantial evidence, they reflect the broader anxieties of a politically divided nation. South Korea remains deeply polarized, with factions both on the left and the right engaging in heated debates over the direction of national policy, governance and responses to external threats, particularly from North Korea. In such a climate, even unfounded rumors can gain traction, feeding public mistrust and intensifying political tensions.

As of this writing, the situation in South Korea is fluid. Whether or not Yoon will be forced to step down (his own party denounced the martial law declaration) will be seen in days to come. Thousands of South Koreans have taken to the streets to protest the President’s declaration.

One thing the Koreans have going in their favor is that there is precedent for a president being forced out of office by demonstrations. President Park Geun-hye, the country’s first female president, was ousted from office and imprisoned for bribery and other crimes in 2017.

Imagine if Mitch McConnell had behaved the same as Korea’s legislators after January 6th. It only takes a few key leaders to cave to dictators to lose our democracy.

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This story was partly gathered via (reliable) sources on social media site BlueSky, the first time I’ve seen it useful for covering breaking news.

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Trump suggests Canada become 51st state after Trudeau said tariff would kill economy: sources via Fox News

• The president-elect told the prime minister if Canada cannot fix the border issues and trade deficit, he will levy a 25% tariff on all Canadian goods on day one when he returns to office.

• Trudeau told Trump he cannot levy the tariff because it would kill the Canadian economy completely. Trump replied – asking, so your country can't survive unless it's ripping off the U.S. to the tune of $100 billion?

• Trump then suggested to Trudeau that Canada become the 51st state, which caused the prime minister and others to laugh nervously, sources told Fox News.

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Coca-Cola accused of quietly dropping its 25% reusable packaging target by Helena Horton at The Guardian

• Coca-Cola has been accused of quietly abandoning a pledge to achieve a 25% reusable packaging target by 2030 in what campaigners call a “masterclass in greenwashing”.

• The company has been previously found by researchers to be among the world’s most polluting brands when it comes to plastic waste.

• In 2022, the company made a promise to have 25% of its drinks sold in refillable or returnable glass or plastic bottles, or in refillable containers that could be filled up at fountains or “Coca-Cola freestyle dispensers”. But shortly before this year’s global plastics summit, the company deleted the page on its website outlining this promise, and it no longer has a target for reusable packaging.

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Republicans don't care if women die from abortion bans — but they don't want you to know about it by Amanda Marcotte at Salon

• This censorship effort doesn't just impact the data about abortion ban-related deaths, either. Before 2022, both Texas and Georgia had some of the highest maternal mortality rates in the country. There's been an eye-popping 56% rise in pregnancy-related deaths in Texas over the past few years. Anyone who actually cared about women or "life" would want to get to the bottom of that. But people like Skop already know what the likely answer will be: Many of these women are dying because they can't get timely abortion care. Some are dying from unsafe abortions. Some are being murdered by partners who are trying to trap them with pregnancy. There's evidence that the overall quality of ob-gyn care in abortion ban states has declined, as doctors flee to legally safer environments. Some will have died, like Nguzemi, after being denied standard miscarriage management care.

• But despite claims to be "pro-life," anti-abortion activists do not care. Instead, they are on Twitter griping about how comprehensive reproductive health care access "promotes sexual promiscuity."

• Skop also argued last year that abortion bans are justified because "promiscuous behavior declines." It's tempting to point out that all five women whose deaths have been reported by ProPublica were in long-term relationships or marriages. Three of the five planned to bring their pregnancies to term and died because they were denied miscarriage care. But that's the problem with vague terms like "promiscuous." They draw us into debates about how much women are allowed to enjoy sex before their lives are forfeited. Or how many "good girls" should die to punish the "promiscuous" ones.