It’s almost a year since the people of South Korea elected Park Geun-hye, daughter of murdered former military leader Park Chung-hee, as president of the country. Park was the leader of the ruling Saenuri Party, and favourite for the top job following earlier local election gains. But in a tumultuous campaign that ebbed and flowed, Park was elected by the skin of her teeth. She looked uneasy in front of the cameras, appearing to lose the TV debates. Her success was in part attributed to an indecisive opposition who stalled too long before announcing their candidate.
North Korea’s missile launch in December also swayed voters in Park’s favour. The North hadn’t featured as prominently as one might imagine during the debates – the economy topped the bill – but Park was seen as the candidate most suitable to deal with any North Korean sabre-rattling or Yellow Sea skirmishes.
Another focal point of the campaign was South Korea’s problem with gender inequality, which Park attempted to use to her advantage. She criticised the “traditionally male-centred politics” that have heaped numerous corruption scandals and power struggles on the country, and insisted that “South Korean society accepting a female president could be the start of a big change”. Ironically, though, Park struggled in the polls among female voters, many of whom plumped for the charming Democratic United Party rival Moon Jae-in.
Those hoping for change were initially left frustrated. Park elected just two female ministers to join her 17-strong cabinet. One of those two positions, Minister for Gender Equality, has never been held by a man since being created in 2001. There were also no women among the group of 12 senior presidential advisers.
The Associated Press reported at the time that Park’s “nomination of so few women is disappointing”. The Daily Post wrote that despite the positive noises during her inauguration speech, Park is “unlikely to prove much of an ambassador for women’s issues” before quoting Clark Sorenson, director of Korean Studies Institute at the University of Washington. “She doesn’t have a feminist agenda of any kind – at all,” he said. “So in that sense nothing’s going to happen.”
South Korea is placed 108th in 135 countries ranked on the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap index. That makes the country’s gender inequality the highest in the developed world. Arabian Peninsula countries, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait, sandwich South Korea in a ranking of which they should all be ashamed.
Chance to tackle gender issues
Park’s plan to deal with this yawning gap, which sees men earn roughly 39 per cent more than women, was seen as slow to begin with. Hampered by a sluggish economy and neighbouring hostility at the start of her tenure, the government now has a chance to tackle some of the present-day gender issues.
Yonhap News Agency reported on 21 October that South Korea’s gender budget will rise dramatically next year, as the government plans to improve “overall welfare conditions and economic participation among women”. The budget plan has yet to be approved by parliament, but if it is passed, the government plans to spend $21.1bn (22.43trn won) next year tackling inequality. That is an enormous rise of “68.6 per cent from the 13.31 trillion won set aside this year for the same purpose,” according to officials.
Some 339 business projects will also commence next year, a jump of 60 from 2013. These projects aim to provide better childcare services and also to crack down on sexual violence against women.
These are early days in a long struggle, but it looks like the country is finally advancing on the promises made last winter.
Andrew Farrell works as an English language teacher in Korea.
