The political polarization in Korea ; democracy crisis and how to solve it

The political polarization that is happening nowadays in Korea is no longer a temporary phenomenon. It is beyond the ideology difference between conservative and liberal. Rather than just an opinion, the political ideology has become whatsoever the standard for individual morality and identity, and it has created fractures all around the society. Now, the opposite idea in politics is not seen as a different opinion, but refers to ‘wrong’ or further more, ‘threatening enemy’, which is eventually causing more conflict than cooperation and compromise.

Historical and institutional factors work as the background for why Korea got so much intense political polarization. The experience of division and the Cold war had made Korean citizens think of political polarization not as just a disagreement but a severe problem in terms of survival and nation’s security. These memories of the past have reinforced the insight as seeing the political opponent as an enemy, not as a competitor. Furthermore,as a winner-takes-all political structure centered on the presidency became entrenched, political competition hardened into a zero-sum game in which compromise was no longer possible. Sadly, within the structure that just one election determines the power, Political parties and politicians become more focused on mobilizing their core supporters and attacking the opposing camp than on expanding toward the center or pursuing cooperation.

The excessive use of political conflicts in politics is also a severe issue. Conflicts between generations, economic inequality, education and housing problems are issues that have structural and complex problems, but in political discourse, the issue is often oversimplified and attributed to the responsibility of a single political camp. Furthermore, the media contents which mainly contain fear and hatred are flooding in youtube and other social media, eventually strengthening the confirmation bias. As a result, citizens become trapped in separate information worlds, losing a shared foundation of dialogue.

But for me, the most important feature of political polarization is the weakness of democracy. The parliament repeatedly experiences breakdown (in Korea, the president's impeachment has been progressed twice). And because of this breakdown, the long term challenges that need to be solved such as pension reform and climate crisis response are pushed to the sidelines, not getting the focus they need. This can lead to a creation of distrust in politics by the citizens, which affects negatively in the participation of citizens in politics. Eventually, democracy loses its capacity for substantive problem solving, only left with its formality.

For the country’s prosperity, we need to take care of this problem seriously and solve it. And to do so, we need a structural approach, not a short term solution. First, a change in the electoral system is necessary. It must be changed in a form that can listen to the voice of the minority and such views to be reflected. Institutional reforms such as strengthening proportional representation can encourage cooperation among political forces and help reduce extreme polarization. At the same time, dividing the presidential power while strengthening the roles of the legislature and local governments is necessary to shift political competition from an ‘all-or-nothing game’ toward a more ‘negotiated and cooperative’ structure.

In the long term view, education in media literacy for citizens is necessary. It is important to inform the citizens that politics is not a fight to eliminate the opponents, but a progress to adjust the conflict. Also, citizens must know that political polarization is not a crisis for a single political party but a crisis for the entire democracy, and the overcoming process of this danger starts with the participation and responsibility of each individual citizen.

As a Korean, I thought talking about political polarization might be controversial, but strongly needed. The polarization between the political parties are getting severe each and every day, and that also causes the people to think wrong about the politics, such as thinking the opponents as an enemy, which in real life they are just the same human being like anyone else. That is why I prepared for this essay, to talk about my thoughts on political polarization and why it has a negative effect on citizens, and finally how to solve it. Not only for Koreans but the people all around the world need to listen to the opponents carefully, because space for reconciliation ultimately leads to national prosperity.