Interview with the Director of the Korean Economic Association, author of the book titled Economic Development in South
Korea, Kim Geok Kyo.
1. How did South Korea look like after the Korean War? Due to the devastating War, there were more than 100 million casualties and 42~44% of manufacturing businesses were also destroyed. Additionally, more than 50% of electricity facilities had been greatly damaged. I will say basically every part of South Korea had completely fallen apart with the amount of war damages being about 3000 million dollars.
2. How poor were the Korean citizens in 1960s? We could barely escape from being on the verge of death from starvation through the help of United Nations. However, due to the high rate of population suffering, Korean citizens life didnt really develop. GNP per capita in 1953 was 82 dollars which increased from the past but still 40% of the population was under a risk because of hunger. Back then, South Korea was one of the poorest nations in the world.
3. In Park Chung Hees regime, what was the major problem that South Korea faced as a country? One of the major problems that South Korea faced was poverty, unemployment, and the international balance of payments. Our economy was unable to grow without the help of other nations. Therefore, in order to escape from the problems that I just mentioned, President Park Chung Hee initiated a policy of high economic growth. President Park wanted to build the foundation of a self-supporting economy.
4. What do you personally think about Park Chung Hee regime? Do you agree with his
dictatorship? In order to develop South Koreas economy, being a democratic President was very hard. If our country had promoted the political democratization in the 1960s, fostering heavy and chemical industries to develop South Korea would have been impossible. Historically, there hasnt been a single case that a country developed through political democratization. Sometimes we just have to see Park Chung Hees dictatorship in a different perspective.
5. Why did Korean citizens need Samaeul Movement? Was this movement necessary? A policy of industrialization through exporting in the 1960s by manufacturing products for export saw a significant performance in expanding the income gap between urban and rural areas. The rural areas faced a problem of low income. Therefore President Park Chung Hee thought without the development of rural areas, modernization of South Korea would have been limited. This was the only reason that Park initiated the Samaeul movement. The Agricultural Community Modernization was possible not only through the economic prosperity but also through peoples positive attitude. Soon, Park Chung Hee emphasized the moral education to people about Samaeul movements three spirits which are: cooperation, diligence and self-help.
6. What specifically was Samaeul movement about? New Village movement is the movement of a comprehensive rural development. Business consists of mental revival, environmental improvement, and working to increase income. First of all, the mental revival is developed through the help of government. They educatde the leaders of Samaeul Movement so that it could spread throughout the region. Second, government tried to improve the living conditions of the villagers, village roadway expansion, construction of a small bridge, roof improvements, wells and facility improvements. Lastly,
business income increased production of rice thorough the the selection of varieties, transplanting operations, and pest prevention.
7. How impactful Samauel Movement was to South Korea? What was Koreas condition after the Samauel Movement? Samaeul Movement dramatically increased the income and improved the living environment of the rural areas. Also, this movement greatly reduced the income gap between urban and rural areas. The produce of rice was 3.5 ton per 1ha. in 1970. However, it increased to over 4.9 ton by 1977. Also, they developed high-yield variety of grain and became self reliant. The rate of difference of income of urban workers to that of farming family increased from 67.1% in 1970 to 98.3% in 1978.
8. Do you think President Park contributed significantly to the development of South Korean economy? Park promoted export and industrialization. He focused on light industry in 1960 and eventually expanded heavy chemical industry in 1970 which led to an appropriate condition of rapid growth in economy during 1980s and 90s. If he had not provided this foundation of the rapid growth, South Korea would have not been able to be one of world's economic power.
9. Is it true that companies like Hyundai, POSCO, and Samsung could expand from small companies to major companies quickly due to Park's dedication? Park did not assist a specific business instead, he supported export-promoting and heavy chemical industrial companies. These companies focused on export-promoting policy and investing on heavy chemical industries such as auto or electronics. This led to a great
expansion of these companies. For instance, Park realized the significance of steel industry in economic development of the country that he made a direct investment from the government to POSCO.
kimck35@yahoo.com
