Blog 12: South Korea Is Surprised by Departure of Candidate

For the final blog we look to South Korea where the presidential election is drawing near. The two parties that are being represented are the liberal Democratic United Party and the conservative Saenuri Party. The Democratic United Party had a strong opposition by an independent candidate that was very similar to the candidate running for office from the Democratic United Party. This candidate, however, stepped down and dropped out of the race for president and in a surprise move backed the Democratic United Party member in an effort to prevent a split vote and in turn put that candidate in office. The candidate did this with the hopes to lower inequality in South Korea which has been brought on by conglomerations that are run by families with scandals and corruption surrounding them. Additionally, the candidate has hopes that by backing the Democratic United Party candidate, the income inequality percentage will decrease significantly. Currently the conservatives are controlling the country and the hope is that this backing will allow the Democratic United Party candidate Mr. Moon Jae-in to win and start creating policies that promote economic growth as well as a unified Korea.
Unlike previous blog posts, this one has a good undertone to it. Instead of problems not being addressed, there are people trying to solve the problems of a country. This is a great step forward compared to other countries where little is done to stimulate change. South Korea has the opportunity and the resources to make this change happen which certainly other countries may not have. However, this should not take away from the opportunities that are being offered and the efforts that are being made to improve the inequality in South Korea. Furthermore, it is great to see that two individuals can come to a compromise and sacrifice to work towards a common good. This is often not the case and in fact leads to further problems and conflicts within a country. Hopefully South Korea continues to improve its inequality gap regardless of who wins.

Eric Spriegel 11/30/12 4:20
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/24/world/asia/ahn-cheol-soo-unexpectedly-quits-south-koreas-presidential-race.html?_r=0