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Opposing corruption in South Korea, a Catholic tradition

Participation in anti-Park demonstrations is part of efforts for a fairer and just society
Opposing corruption in South Korea, a Catholic tradition

Mass celebrated at the anti-Park protest site in central Seoul. (Photo by Cristian Martini Grimaldi)

Published: March 02, 2017 04:58 AM GMT
Updated: March 02, 2017 10:04 AM GMT

Last December an impeachment motion suspended South Korean President Park Geun-hye's powers and left it up to the country's Constitutional Court to decide whether to uphold the motion and remove her from office or reject it and reinstate her.

The Court held a final hearing for her impeachment trial on Feb. 27 but Park — accused of colluding with a friend Choi Soon-sil to pressure big businesses to donate funds — did not attend the hearing. In doing so Park denied herself a final opportunity to defend herself in front of eight justices over the scandal. As the chief prosecutor in the trial put it: Park betrayed the trust people put in her by "broadly and gravely" violating the Constitution and criminal laws.

Park's lawyers did not give specific reasons for her decision not to attend but they argued that the motion lacked specific information about her alleged crimes and the duties she is accused of failing to perform.

A less diplomatic view is held by thousands of pro-Park demonstrators who gather each Saturday in Central Seoul and they even have their own conspiracy theory that explains the scandal. "It's a plot from North Korea to destabilize our government," said a man in his 50s who seemed behind the organization of the pro-Park demonstration in City Hall plaza at the center of Seoul.

"We had a million people coming here with us, we stand behind our president," said the man who didn't want to reveal his name. Official figures actually speak of no more than 50,000 Park's supporters attending such events.

Just few hundreds meters away there was an anti-Park demonstration. Spearheaded by the Catholic Church, hundreds of thousand of participants gather there each Saturday asking for Park's impeachment. And every Monday a Mass is celebrated along the Gwanghwamun Plaza where the enormous statue of Korea's King Sejong the Great (1397–1450) stands tall.

A big yellow ribbon and tents surround the respected King's statue. The yellow ribbon is the unequivocal symbol of support for the victims of the Sewol tragedy, when three years ago a ferry capsized and 304 passengers, mostly high school students, lost their lives.

In fact the impeachment motion that suspended Park from power was not only supported by evidence of political corruption, she is also judged by many to be responsible of the Sewol disaster, with accusations that she was unaccounted for several hours while the accident was taking place. Her critics say that lives could have been saved had she responded more quickly to the emergency.

 

Mass attendees at the anti-Park protest site in central Seoul. (Photo by Cristian Martini Grimaldi)

 

United in supporting impeachment

The Catholic Korean dioceses are all united in supporting the impeachment of the president. The Korean bishop conference, via a public statement, recently emphasized that people must have the right to impeach their president, quoting Amos 5.24: "Let justice flow like water, and uprightness like a never-failing stream."

I meet Joseph at the protest, a Jesuit in his thirties.

"Propaganda" the priest said with a laugh when I ask what he thinks about the pro-Park movement taking place just few hundreds meters away. "It is on-going propaganda, probably financed by the big Cheabol (South Korean multinational corporations) who have more to lose from Park's impeachment," he said.

"They say they have brought a million people on the streets, while their last demonstration on Saturday was the biggest so far and only had 50,000 people, mostly paid to be there," he said.

How does their propaganda work? I asked

"It is very effective with the elderly who don't follow social media. They are fed false information through specific webpages, fabricated news to convince them that an impeachment of the president is a worse option for the country. I can give you a few examples," he said. "Those fake new stories are saying there is a North Korean connection with the anti-Park demonstrators," said the priest. "They say a famous American scholar is saying that South Korea will suffer big trouble if Park is impeached, they say the Chinese president said that is better for Korea if the impeachment process is stopped," he said. "These of course are all lies. But many of those elderly believe it; they are the easiest to be influenced and among them are a lot of Catholics too. Remember the majority of Catholics in South Korea are old people," he added.

A Catholic woman named Hanna in her 30s explained why she was protesting: "we are here to keep alive the memory of those who died in the Sewol accident but also to bring to justice those responsible of political corruption."

There is no need to ask her whom they blame. A gigantic mannequin made of polystyrene resembling Park with a needle stuck into her jugular is at the protest site.

"We don't trust the legal processes, and the president should be impeached, also the Samsung people (part of the Cheabol) need to pay for their corruption, this is what most people want," said another Catholic aged in his 50s. Despite being in a wheel chair and he came for the Mass held outdoors in below zero temperatures.

Samsung has been accused of making donations in tens of millions of dollars to foundations controlled by Choi Soon-sil, the president's confidante. The donations allegedly made in return for political favors.

"The system that has been built for decades may be falling down," says Peter, a young priest. "This corrupt system where big companies and government are strictly tied was developed in the 60s, the military regime needed the big company's support to stay in power. And companies were helped to be stronger in return," he said. "That's how they grew so big so quickly."

 

A glowing yellow ribbon — a symbol of support for the victims of the Sewol ferry disaster — as seen at the anti-Park protest site. (Photo by Cristian Martini Grimaldi)

 

Catholic opposition to corruption in South Korea is not a unique phenomenon. During the military regime that ruled South Korea decades ago, Catholics — despite being a religious minority — became the main opposition force. During what was a prolonged period of non-violent opposition, the church offered a strong voice of resistance in the defense of human rights and freedom in the country.

"The bishops in the 70s published pamphlets against the regime and those pamphlets used the social doctrine of the church to criticize their government which is a similar situation to what is happening now," said the young priest.

"Also at that time the church formed groups for social engagement, such as the National Association of Catholic Priests for the Realization of Social Justice, and the Korean Commission for Justice and Peace and is not a random fact that also the priests who are being the loudest in the current protests are part of the same Association for Social Justice," he said.

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