‘The impossible country’

That’s the title of a book written by Daniel Tudor in 2012. And it refers to South Korea, considered “the poorest, most impossible country on the planet” in the 1950s.

From 1910 to 1945, Korea was occupied and ruled with extreme cruelty by Japan. More than 200,000 of its women became sex slaves, and its men were used for forced labor. Everyone was required to take a Japanese name, speak the Japanese language, and worship at Japanese Shinto shrines.

When World War II ended in 1945, Korea was divided into two—the South which was influenced and controlled by America, and the North which was controlled by the Soviet Union.

In 1950, North Korea invaded South Korea and war erupted.

When the Korean War ended in 1953, South Korea’s infrastructure—roads, bridges, buildings—was almost completely destroyed. A third of the population were rendered homeless. Orphaned children wandered the streets, looking for food. About 95 percent of the people lived in poverty. The government was utterly dependent on foreign aid, principally from the United States. GDP per capita was below $100. Only 5 percent of the people finished high school; less than 1 percent finished college. Around 3 million, or 10 percent of the population, died during the war.

To make things worse, South Korea has virtually no natural resources to speak of. Only 21 percent of the land is arable and fit to grow crops on. On top of all these, the country’s first president, Syngman Rhee, was corrupt, dictatorial, and didn’t care much for the people’s welfare.

It was against this dark context that South Korea began as a country. It was literally born in the ruins of war and extreme poverty. But a mere 50 years later, it has become one of Asia’s—and the world’s—economic miracles. Today it is an economic powerhouse and a stable democracy.

How did South Korea do it? Tudor, a graduate of Oxford University, has very interesting observations.

South Korea’s journey to success and prosperity began with Park Chung Hee, who was installed president in 1961 after a coup d’etat that followed the “April Revolution” that forced the corrupt Syngman Rhee to flee to Hawaii.

One crucial thing that President Park pursued at the start was to build his people’s spirit. He exhorted his people to make South Korea No. 1 in Asia. The government printed posters challenging the people to “Beat Japan,” their former colonizer, through industrialization. Some posters ran the rallying cry: “We can do it!” Even among the Christians, the most popular slogan was: “A poor Christian is not a good Christian.” Parents and teachers drilled into the minds of the youth that they were on a historic mission to revive their country.

This government campaign was very successful. The Koreans began to believe in themselves as the Korean spirit soared. Park believed that in building a person or people, the spirit is more important than the flesh, the mind more important than the body. As a result of that campaign, the spirit of patriotism continues to run high among Koreans today.

Another crucial move by Park was to discipline the political leaders and business oligarchs. He believed that these two groups were stumbling blocks to South Korea’s progress. Thus, he prosecuted and jailed corrupt political leaders. He rounded up corrupt businessmen and tax evaders, and subjected them to public humiliation. Some were forced to march in the streets carrying placards with the message “I am a corrupt swine.” Even Samsung founder Lee Byung-chul was jailed for corruption and tax evasion. Soon the oligarchs and businessmen cooperated with Park and participated in his economic development plan. With the government direction and support, the  chaebols  (or big business conglomerates) helped  fast-track South Korea’s industrialization.

The third crucial thing that Park did was to provide a clear vision or economic direction for his country. He set the vision to make it Asia’s leader in shipbuilding, a vision that was attained a few years after his death in 1979. He set the vision to make South Korea the most industrialized country in Asia, and exhorted the  chaebols  to go into the manufacture of cars, electronic goods, household appliances, office equipment, and fertilizer, among others, which they also achieved. He set a clear policy for import substitution. Once a company began manufacturing a certain product, the government would block the import of competing goods from abroad. Many Korean firms benefited from this protectionist policy.

The fourth crucial thing that Park did was to champion the “Saemaul Undong (New Village) Movement,” a rural development program. The government provided farming education, training and technological support to farmers in every farm village. But it also told the people to depend, not on the government, but on themselves.

The campaign spread like wildfire. The people became entrepreneurial and self-reliant. It changed the attitudes and culture of the rural folk. The Saemaul Undong Movement became the “cultural revolution” that built South Korea’s agricultural sector, which is now one of the most successful in Asia.

When Park died in 1979, his people learned that he had only one piece of property, an old apartment that he bought before he became president in 1961. He did not enrich himself while in power—another great thing that he did for his people.

Today, South Korea is Asia’s fourth largest economy and the world’s 15th. It is the world’s 16th largest donor to developing nations. Its people are the highest paid employees in Asia. Less than 2 percent of the population live in poverty.

Is there hope for our Philippines? You bet. I am a great believer in our potential as a people!

Alex Lacson ([email protected]) is the author of the book “12 Little Things Every Filipino Can Do To Help Our Country.”