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Commentary: Learning from Koreans in punishing their presidents
We are too forgiving of our leaders, including former presidents, while the Koreans are merciless.
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Hundreds of thousands of people gathered at a rally to call for the impeachment of then South Korean President Park Geun-hye, in a photo dated Dec. 3, 2016. (Shutterstock.com/BYUNGSUK KO)
S
outh Korean President Moon Jae-in will meet President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo on Thursday as a part of his three-day state visit to Indonesia until Friday. The nuclear threats from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will definitely be among the top issues raised by Jokowi’s guest, while the host will likely focus on the South’s investment and trade relations.
President Moon won an early presidential election in May following the impeachment of Park Geun-hye last November. She is now facing a life sentence for abuse of power.
Moon is very eager to boost relations with ASEAN, including Indonesia. The South is a major investor in Indonesia currently.
One thing is sure about the bilateral relations between the two G20 members: South Korean companies such as LG and Samsung remained loyal to Indonesia during the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis, while many Japanese companies abandoned us and fled to China. South Korea’s trust in us has paid off, while Japanese companies are no longer as dominant as they were in the decades leading up to the financial disaster.
