The New Right: political winds in South Korea.

Progressive politicians have dominated South Korean politics for the past half decade. This environment has fostered a more participatory democracy, manifested by the strengthened voice of non-governmental organizations. However, the current government's repeated blunders in everyday issues, such as its failure to harness dangerously increasing real estate prices or its inability to take a strong stance against Japan in the conflict over the Dokdo Islands, have spawned discontent among moderates and conservatives alike. Many young conservatives, however, are also dissatisfied with the traditional conservative party, which is still associated with corruption during the authoritarian rule and economic failure in the late 1990s.

Against this backdrop, self-proclaimed "rational conservatives" have formed an alternative conservative option. Mostly middle-aged academics, these members of the "New Right" are forming non-governmental organizations in order to increase their voice in society and balance Korea's increasingly left-swinging ideological pendulum. The emergence of the New Right has sparked hope for many who are disillusioned by Korea's ideologically polarized politics. However, the New Right in its current state is in danger of degenerating into a transient fad. In order to secure a permanent place in the political spectrum, the New Right must find a voice independent of both traditional conservatives and governing liberals.

The basic ideology of the New Right consists of both traditional opposition to the progressive party and innovative departure from the current conservative party's stance. The most striking differences from the latter are the New Right's emphasis on civil liberties and flexibility concerning humanitarian aid to North Korea. The ideological foundation of the New Right is not democracy but classical liberalism--the promotion of individual freedom in both the civil and economic sectors of society. This ideological premise allows the New Right to oppose the current government's market regulations and to simultaneously embrace an increasingly popular emphasis on civil liberties. Furthermore, these new conservatives' emphasis on human rights has prompted them to stray from the hard-line stance of the traditional conservative party regarding North Korea. While the Grand National Party (GNP), the leading conservative party for decades, still refuses to recognize North Korea, the New Right has agreed to recognize it as a separate country while maintaining a vocal opposition to North Korea's authoritarian regime and gross violations of human rights. They are also more open to the idea of amending the anti-communist National Security Law, as part of their effort to promote civil rights. The New Right's flexibility is an important and positive asset and will be crucial in its struggle to carve out a distinct identity in South Korea's political universe.

On economic and foreign policies, the New Right maintains a more traditional stance that is closer to the views of the mainstream conservative party. Rational conservatives share the belief that the current leftist government's anti-US policies are detrimental to national security and prefer to look West rather than East for strong allies. The New Right, however, does draw a fine line between old and new by professing to have a more open and rational approach. In a Joonang Daily poll of 117 university professors, more than half answered that they considered traditional conservatives to be "blindly in love with America" and, in contrast, they wanted to "strategically use" the country for South Korea's national interest. On the economic front, the New Right believes that there is a national consensus on the need of an open, free economy and that Seoul should work toward integrating itself into the world community. Recent progress toward free trade agreements with the United States was met with applause among all ranks of new conservatives.

The New Right is a refreshing change from the conventional dynamic of Korean politics, and many hope that it will spearhead a healthy dialogue that will reconcile the intensifying ideological split. Despite good intentions, however, the New Right has two major challenges to overcome in order to become an independent entity. Many critics believe that the new conservatives have drawn only a line in the sand to distinguish themselves from the traditional Grand National Party. "It appears that most of recently formed conservative groups, while boasting rational conservatism, are not that different from traditional right-wingers," criticizes professor Jung Hae-gu from Sung Kong Hoe University. "Traditions of anti-communism ... are still visible in the name of liberalism." Indeed, it seems to be too early to bet on long term changes. Some feel the buzz is overrated and argue that it is ambiguous as to whether the New Right will bring long-lasting changes in South Korean politics by reorganizing political parties.

The New Right's attempt to differentiate itself from the GNP is further complicated by the incorporation of traditional conservatives into the ranks of the new organization. With members of the New Right supporting traditional candidates who closely associated with the past military regime, it cannot escape criticism that it is nothing more than a facade for the "Red Guards of the GNP." Yet, at least for the near future, the New Right has little chance of electoral success without help from the GNP. The track record of third parties of South Korea is disheartening for the New Right. It was not long ago that the Uri Party was hailed as a third, alternative party, but now, it has absorbed most of the old liberals of the Minju party. The de facto two-party political structure of Korean politics makes survival for a third party extremely difficult. The extensive GNP political machine, built and refined over the past five decades, is a formidable force in crucial, and close, elections. Without a powerful political infrastructure and strong party organization, the New Right will face an uphill struggle in elections, regardless of the quality of its ideas.

The most glaring shortcoming of the New Right is that it does not offer a viable model by which it can incorporate both a strong civil society to protect civil liberties and a small, but significant, government to maintain free markets. In other words, while it has successfully criticized many market restrictions imposed by the current government and shown efforts to reconcile with the emerging civil society, it has failed to come up with a meaningful and viable political program that incorporates both of these issues for the future. In its current state, the New Right is not an alternative ideology but only a vocal opposition. A stronger and clearer ideological stance will make the New Right not only more attractive to potential voters but will also help in building a lasting political organization for the party. Indeed, the rising popularity of the New Right and its ideas seems to indicate that there is room in South Korean politics for a better-defined center-right party such as the New Right.

Yet, faced with a crucial election, the New Right movement is already showing signs of being incorporated into the old ranks of the GNP and of losing its independent perspective. Discussions about an alliance between the new and old conservatives are increasingly failing to recognize the fine differences that separate the New Right and the old guard. To initiate a political dialogue that will leave a lasting mark on South Korean politics, the new movement must find a way to solve the conundrum of balancing a strong civil society and an equally significant government, and go beyond the role of mere opposition. With such changes, the New Right could be the beginning of a new era.

associate editor

YUNA HAN