An Introduction

I suppose I should post an introduction to myself and my blog. I have been keeping a personal (private) Korea blog for some time, but as I have settled into a more mundane existence here in Korea, I find that my personal experiences have become less interesting to myself and others. At the same time, my desire to comment on Korean society has grown, and so I have decided to shift the emphasis of my writings and so have moved my writings here. Here is my introduction post written for the “about” section. It is intended to give laymen a simple understanding of Korea and the issues in the country today.

The Ranting Englishman is an EFL teacher in Korea. He is married to a Korean woman, and will soon be father to a Korean girl. This blog is intended to be a place for him to post his rants about living a life as a foreigner in Korea.

Korea is a complicated place, and the culture more so. Often describes as the “Hermit Kingdom”, they have historically tried to isolate themselves from external influence. This policy of isolation is largely due to the treatment they have received from neighbouring countries in the past. Geographically placed between China and Japan, they have suffered under the influence of both countries, and many aspects of Korean culture are directly taken from their former masters, Confucianism being the most obvious example.

In recent (20th century) history, Korea was annexed by Japan, and the people suffered many misfortunes at the hands of their colonial rulers. The Korean people were stripped of their language, and forced to take Japanese names. The crimes committed by the Japanese (often with the help of privileged Koreans) are too numerous to list here, but can be easily researched.

Near the end of WWII the Japanese retreated from Korea. The USA and the USSR had made an agreement to temporarily occupy of Korea. The USSR were to control the northern part of the country (which borders China and Russia), whilst the US were given control of the south.

Each side wanted to give control of the country to a political sympathiser, the US were not particularly keen on granting the USSR full control of Korea by allowing them to install their own leader to control the entire country. As the two sides could not reach an immediate agreement, they each installed a leader area they controlled, and US forces left the peninsula. A divided Korea was understood by both parties to be temporary arrangement, but rising tensions along the border became all out war when the North marched on the South. The US returned to Korea to assist in repelling the communist North, and China soon joined forces with the South. The war lasted for 3 years before a ceasefire was agreed. Korea is still divided, and the two countries are still ‘at war’.

In the latter part of the 20th century, the South Korean economy has flourished. The industrialisation of the once devastated country has been incredible, and they are now listed as the 11th largest economy in the world. The large corporations (Samsung, LG, Daewoo, Hyundai, etc.) control a lot of the wealth in the country, and wealth here often equals power. These corporations are often free to act with impunity, and in some cases illegal activities by these corporations have been treated leniently so as not to negatively impact the economy. As a newly industrialised nation, many of the laws have been unable to keep pace, and corruption is not uncommon at all levels of Korean society.

Gender equality laws are outdated, and are backed up by the bastardisation of Confucianist thinking that prevails in Korea. Women are second class citizens, and this belief is backed up by the legal system.

Korea is reluctantly opening itself up to foreign influence, through necessity rather than desire. Koreans feel a need for English language acquisition, and so allow foreign instructors to work in the country. There are many restrictions placed on immigrants to Korea, and these restrictions are often given legitimacy by government institutions. Immigration laws allow employers a great level of control over workers, and injustices are overlooked when the wronged party is not Korean. Racist banking laws are often written into legislation (though just as often are not) and the Police will almost always side with a Korean over a foreigner.

The events of the first half of the 20th century are still fresh in the minds of the Korean people and they are mistrustful of all foreign interaction. Despite the losses incurred by allied forces during the Korean War, and the subsequent American presence that has protected Korea from any further incursions, there is a decidedly anti-American feeling in Korea.

Finally, progress in Korea is being held back by a tendency for the Korean people to completely over-react to information, without any regard to validity.

This blog will be my place to rant, as much for my sanity as that of my wife. Over the past few weeks I have been angered by a number of news stories that have hit the foreigner blogs in Korea, and I feel a need to say my piece. The current US Beef fiasco has been my breaking point, but is by no means the least important thing to me. In the past few weeks a rapist was set free because his victim was wearing jeans and jeans are difficult to remove. Never mind the 20 weeks of hospital treatment required!, a perverted principal went back to school after photographing a young girls thighs on the subway (and slapping her for objecting), the attempted abduction of a child that was ignored by Police (he was drunk, so that’s ok! Thankfully, the President went apeshit after seeing the video and this recently released pedophile was arrested again) or the Police who would not arrest a man who was raping his stepdaughter because it was not their job!

I hope to base my rants on the injustices that face women, children and foreigners in Korea. My wife is a Korean woman, and my daughter will be a Korean woman. I will also reserve the right to post comment on any other thing I see fit!

Finally, if you are looking for weighty argument, please go visit the Metropolitician’s blog (the best in Korea, according to me). This is a place to rant!