South Korea

Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs                                      
May 2007                                                                      
                                                                       
  Background Note: South Korea
                                               
  Chogye temple, Seoul, South Korea, May 5, 2006. [© AP Images]               
                                             
  Country Map                                                                 
                                                                       
  Flag of South Korea is white with a red (top) and blue yin-yang symbol in the
  center; there is a different black trigram from the ancient I Ching (Book of
  Changes) in each corner of the white field.                                 
                                                                       
  PROFILE                                                                     
                                                                       
  OFFICIAL NAME:                                                              
  Republic of Korea                                                           
                                                                       
  Geography                                                                   
  Area: 98,477 sq. km. (38,022 sq. mi.); about the size of Indiana.           
  Cities (2005): Capital--Seoul (10.3 million). Other major cities--Busan (3.7
  million), Daegu (2.5 million), Inchon (2.6 million), Gwangju (1.4 million), 
  Daejeon (1.5 million), Ulsan (1.0 million).                                 
  Terrain: Partially forested mountain ranges separated by deep, narrow       
  valleys; cultivated plains along the coasts, particularly in the west and   
  south.                                                                      
  Climate: Temperate.                                                         
                                                                       
  People                                                                      
  Nationality: Noun and adjective--Korean(s).                                 
  Population (2006): 48,846,823.                                              
  Population annual growth rate (2006): 0.42%.                                
  Ethnic groups: Korean; small Chinese minority.                              
  Religions: Christianity, Buddhism, Shamanism, Confucianism, Chondogyo.      
  Language: Korean.                                                           
  Education: Years compulsory--9. Enrollment--11.5 million. Attendance--middle
  school 99%, high school 95%. Literacy--98%.                                 
  Health (2006): Infant mortality rate--6.16/1,000. Life expectancy--77.0 yrs 
  (men 73.6 yrs.; women 80.8 yrs).                                            
  Work force (2005): 23.53 million. Services--67.2%; mining and manufacturing 
  --26.4%; agriculture--6.4%.                                                 
                                                                       
  Government                                                                  
  Type: Republic with powers shared between the president, the legislature, and
  the courts.                                                                 
  Liberation: August 15, 1945.                                                
  Constitution: July 17, 1948; last revised 1987.                             
  Branches: Executive--President (chief of state); Prime Minister (head of    
  government). Legislative--unicameral National Assembly. Judicial--Supreme   
  Court and appellate courts; Constitutional Court.                           
  Subdivisions: Nine provinces, seven administratively separate cities (Seoul,
  Busan, Incheon, Daegu, Gwangju, Daejeon, Ulsan).                            
  Political parties: Uri Party (Uri); Grand National Party (GNP); Democratic  
  Party (DP); Democratic Labor Party (DLP); People Centered Party (PCP).      
  Suffrage: Universal at 19.                                                  
  Central government budget (2004): Expenditures--$100.46 billion.            
  Defense (2005): $21.06 billion; over 680,000 troops.                        
                                                                       
  Economy                                                                     
  Nominal GDP: 2005, $787.5 billion; 2006 est., $897.4 billion.               
  GDP growth rate: 2004, 4.7%; 2005, 4.0%; 2006 est. 5.0%.                    
  Per capita GNI (2005): $16,291.                                             
  Consumer price index: 2004, 3.6%; 2005, 2.8%; 2006, 2.2%.                   
  Natural resources: Limited coal, tungsten, iron ore, limestone, kaolinite,  
  and graphite.                                                               
  Agriculture, including forestry and fisheries: Products--rice, vegetables,  
  fruit, root crops, barley; cattle, pigs, chickens, milk, eggs, fish. Arable 
  land--17% of land area.                                                     
  Industry: Types--Electronics and electrical products, telecommunications,   
  motor vehicles, shipbuilding, mining and manufacturing, petrochemicals,     
  industrial machinery, steel.                                                
  Trade (2006 est.): Exports--$360.0 billion f.o.b.: electronic products      
  (semiconductors, cellular phones and equipment, computers), automobiles,    
  machinery and equipment, steel, ships, petrochemicals. Imports--$343.0      
  billion f.o.b.: crude oil, food, machinery and transportation equipment,    
  chemicals and chemical products, base metals and articles. Major markets    
  (2005)--China (21.8%), U.S. (14.6.%), Japan (8.5%), Hong Kong (5.5%). Major 
  suppliers (2005)--Japan (18.5%), China (14.8%), U.S. (11.8%), Saudi Arabia  
  (6.2%).                                                                     
                                                                       
  PEOPLE                                                                      
                                                                       
  Population                                                                  
  Korea's population is one of the most ethnically and linguistically         
  homogenous in the world. Except for a small Chinese community (about 20,000),
  virtually all Koreans share a common cultural and linguistic heritage. With 
  48.85 million people, South Korea has one of the world's highest population 
  densities. Major population centers are located in the northwest, southeast,
  and in the plains south of the Seoul-Incheon area.                          
                                                                       
  Korea has experienced one of the largest rates of emigration, with ethnic   
  Koreans residing primarily in China (1.9 million), the United States (1.52  
  million), Japan (681,000), and the countries of the former Soviet Union     
  (450,000).                                                                  
                                                                       
  Language                                                                    
  The Korean language is related to Japanese and Mongolian. Although it differs
  grammatically from Chinese and does not use tones, a large number of Chinese
  cognates exist in Korean. Chinese ideograms are believed to have been brought
  into Korea sometime before the second century BC. The learned class spoke   
  Korean, but read and wrote Chinese. A phonetic writing system ("hangul") was
  invented in the 15th century by King Sejong to provide a writing system for 
  commoners who could not read classical Chinese. Modern Korean uses hangul   
  almost exclusively with Chinese characters in limited use for word          
  clarification. Approximately 1,300 Chinese characters are used in modern    
  Korean. English is taught as a second language in most primary and secondary
  schools. Chinese and Japanese are widely taught at secondary schools.       
                                                                       
  Religion                                                                    
  Half of the population actively practices religion. Among this group,       
  Christianity (49%) and Buddhism (47%) comprise Korea's two dominant         
  religions. Though only 3% identified themselves as Confucianists, Korean    
  society remains highly imbued with Confucian values and beliefs. The        
  remaining 1% of the population practice Shamanism (traditional spirit       
  worship) and Chondogyo ("Heavenly Way"), a traditional religion.            
                                                                       
  HISTORY                                                                     
  The myth of Korea's foundation by the god-king Tangun in BC 2333 embodies the
  homogeneity and self-sufficiency valued by the Korean people. Korea         
  experienced many invasions by its larger neighbors in its 2,000 years of    
  recorded history. The country repelled numerous foreign invasions despite   
  domestic strife, in part due to its protected status in the Sino-centric    
  regional political model during Korea's Chosun dynasty (1392-1910).         
  Historical antipathies to foreign influence earned Korea the title of "Hermit
  Kingdom" in the 19th century.                                               
                                                                       
  With declining Chinese power and a weakened domestic posture at the end of  
  the 19th century, Korea was open to Western and Japanese encroachment. In   
  1910, Japan began a 35-year period of colonial rule over Korea. As a result 
  of Japan's efforts to supplant the Korean language and aspects of Korean    
  culture, memories of Japanese annexation still recall fierce animosity and  
  resentment, especially among older Koreans. Nevertheless, import restrictions
  on Japanese movies, popular music, fashion, and the like have been lifted,  
  and many Koreans, especially the younger generations, eagerly follow Japanese
  pop culture. Aspects of Korean culture, including television shows and      
  movies, have also become popular in Japan.                                  
                                                                       
  Japan's surrender to the Allied Powers in 1945, signaling the end of World  
  War II, only further embroiled Korea in foreign rivalries. Division at the  
  38th parallel marked the beginning of Soviet and U.S. trusteeship over the  
  North and South, respectively. On August 15, 1948 the Republic of Korea     
  (R.O.K.) was established, with Syngman Rhee as the first President. On      
  September 9, 1948 the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (D.P.R.K.) was  
  established under Kim Il Sung.                                              
                                                                       
  On June 25, 1950, North Korean forces invaded South Korea. Led by the U.S., a
  16-member coalition undertook the first collective action under United      
  Nations Command (UNC). Following China's entry on behalf of North Korea later
  that year, a stalemate ensued for the final two years of the conflict.      
  Armistice negotiations, initiated in July 1951, were ultimately concluded on
  July 27, 1953 at Panmunjom, in what is now the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). The
  Armistice Agreement was signed by representatives of the Korean People's    
  Army, the Chinese People's Volunteers, and the U.S.-led United Nations      
  Command (UNC). Though the R.O.K. supported the UNC, it refused to sign the  
  Armistice Agreement. A peace treaty has never been signed. The war left     
  almost three million Koreans dead or wounded and millions of others homeless
  and separated from their families.                                          
                                                                       
  In the following decades, South Korea experienced political turmoil under   
  autocratic leadership. President Syngman Rhee was forced to resign in April 
  1960 following a student-led uprising. The Second Republic under the        
  leadership of Chang Myon ended after only one year, when Major General Park 
  Chung-hee led a military coup. Park's rule, which resulted in tremendous    
  economic growth and development but increasingly restricted political       
  freedoms, ended with his assassination in 1979. Subsequently, a powerful    
  group of military officers, led by Lieutenant General Chun Doo Hwan, declared
  martial law and took power.                                                 
                                                                       
  Throughout the Park and Chun eras, South Korea developed a vocal civil      
  society that led to strong protests against authoritarian rule. Composed    
  primarily of students and labor union activists, protest movements reached a
  climax after Chun's 1979 coup and declaration of martial law. A confrontation
  in Gwangju in 1980 left at least 200 civilians dead. Thereafter,            
  pro-democracy activities intensified even more, ultimately forcing political
  concessions by the government in 1987, including the restoration of direct  
  presidential elections.                                                     
                                                                       
  In 1987, Roh Tae-woo, a former general, was elected president, but additional
  democratic advances during his tenure resulted in the 1992 election of a    
  long-time pro-democracy activist, Kim Young-sam. Kim became Korea's first   
  civilian elected president in 32 years. The 1997 presidential election and  
  peaceful transition of power marked another step forward in Korea's         
  democratization when Kim Dae-jung, a life-long democracy and human rights   
  activist, was elected from a major opposition party. The transition to an   
  open, democratic system was further consolidated in 2002, when self-educated
  human rights lawyer, Roh Moo-hyun, won the presidential election on a       
  "participatory government" platform.                                        
                                                                       
  GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS                                         
  The Republic of Korea (commonly known as "South Korea") is a republic with  
  powers nominally shared among the presidency, the legislature, and the      
  judiciary, but traditionally dominated by the president. The president is   
  chief of state and is elected for a single term of 5 years. The 299 members 
  of the unicameral National Assembly are elected to 4-year terms--243 members
  are from single-seat districts and 56 members are chosen by proportional    
  representation. South Korea's judicial system comprises a Supreme Court,    
  appellate courts, and a Constitutional Court. The judiciary is independent  
  under the constitution. The country has nine provinces and seven            
  administratively separate cities--the capital of Seoul, along with Busan,   
  Daegu, Daejeon, Gwangju, Incheon and Ulsan. Political parties include the Uri
  Party (Uri), Grand National Party (GNP), Democratic Labor Party (DLP),      
  Democratic Party (DP), and People Centered Party (PCP). Suffrage is universal
  at age 19 (lowered from 20 in 2005).                                        
                                                                       
  In December 2002, President Roh Moo-hyun was elected to a single 5-year term
  of office. In the April 2004 elections, the ruling Uri Party won a slim but 
  outright majority in the National Assembly. Because of the loss of seats in 
  by-elections and as a result of convictions for election law violations, Uri
  no longer has a majority, but does retain a plurality of seats.             
                                                                       
  Principal Government Officials                                              
  President--Roh Moo-hyun                                                     
  Prime Minister--Han Duck-soo                                                
  Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education and Human Resource          
  Development--Kim Shin-il                                                    
  Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Economy--Kwon O-kyu       
  Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and Technology--Kim Woo-shik  
  Minister of Agriculture and Forestry--Park Hong-soo                         
  Minister of Commerce, Industry and Energy--Chung Sye-kyun                   
  Minister of Construction and Transportation--Lee Yong-sup                   
  Minister of Culture and Tourism--Kim Myung-gon                              
  Minister of Environment--Lee Chi-beom                                       
  Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade--Song Min-soon                        
  Minister of Gender Equality and Family--Jang Ha-jin                         
  Minister of Government Administration & Home Affairs--Park Myung-jae        
  Minister of Government Policy Coordination--Kim Young-ju                    
  Minister of Health and Welfare--Rhyu Si-min                                 
  Minister of Information and Communication--Rho Jun-hyong                    
  Minister of Justice--Kim Sung-ho                                            
  Minister of Labor Affairs--Lee Sang-soo                                     
  Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries--Kim Sung-jin                    
  Minister of National Defense--Kim Jang-soo                                  
  Minister of Planning and Budget--Chang Byoung-wan                           
  Minister of Unification--Lee Jae-jong                                       
  Director of the National Intelligence Service--Kim Man-bok                  
  Chief Secretary to the President for Unification, Foreign, and Security     
  Policy--Baek Jong-chun                                                      
  Ambassador to the U.S.--Lee Tae-sik                                         
  Ambassador to the UN--Choi Young-jin                                        
                                                                       
  Korea maintains an embassy in the United States at 2450 Massachusetts Avenue
  NW, Washington, DC 20008 (tel. 202-939-5600). Consulates General are located
  in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San  
  Francisco, Seattle, and Hagatna (Agana) in Guam.                            
                                                                       
  ECONOMY                                                                     
  The Republic of Korea's economic growth over the past 30 years has been     
  spectacular. Per capita GNP, only $100 in 1963, exceeded $16,000 in 2005.   
  South Korea is now the United States' seventh-largest trading partner and is
  the 11th-largest economy in the world.                                      
                                                                       
  In the early 1960s, the government of Park Chung Hee instituted sweeping    
  economic policy changes emphasizing exports and labor-intensive light       
  industries, leading to rapid debt-financed industrial expansion. The        
  government carried out a currency reform, strengthened financial            
  institutions, and introduced flexible economic planning. In the 1970s Korea 
  began directing fiscal and financial policies toward promoting heavy and    
  chemical industries, consumer electronics, and automobiles. Manufacturing   
  continued to grow rapidly in the 1980s and early 1990s.                     
                                                                       
  In recent years, Korea's economy moved away from the centrally planned,     
  government-directed investment model toward a more market-oriented one. Korea
  bounced back from the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis with some International
  Monetary Fund (IMF) assistance, but based largely on extensive financial    
  reforms that restored stability to markets. These economic reforms, pushed by
  President Kim Dae-jung, helped Korea maintain one of Asia's few expanding   
  economies, with growth rates of 10% in 1999 and 9% in 2000. The slowing     
  global economy and falling exports slowed growth to 3.3% in 2001, prompting 
  consumer stimulus measures that led to 7.0% growth in 2002. Consumer        
  over-shopping and rising household debt, along with external factors, slowed
  growth to near 3% again in 2003. Economic performance in 2004 improved to   
  4.6% due to an increase in exports, and remained at or above 4% in 2005 and 
  into 2006.                                                                  
                                                                       
  Economists are concerned that South Korea's economic growth potential has   
  fallen because of a rapidly aging population and structural problems that are
  becoming increasingly apparent. Foremost among these structural concerns is 
  the rigidity of South Korea's labor regulations, the need for more          
  constructive relations between management and workers, the country's        
  underdeveloped financial markets, and a general lack of regulatory          
  transparency. Restructuring of Korean conglomerates ("chaebols") and creating
  a more liberalized economy with a mechanism for bankrupt firms to exit the  
  market are also important unfinished reform tasks. Korean policy makers are 
  increasingly worried about diversion of corporate investment to China and   
  other lower wage countries.                                                 
                                                                       
  North-South Economic Ties                                                   
  North and South Korea have moved forward on a number of economic cooperation
  projects. The following projects are most prominent:                        
                                                                       
                                                                       
    * Kaesong Industrial Complex (KIC): Since the June 2003 groundbreaking, the
      KIC has grown to include a variety of South Korean companies operating in
      this North-South cooperation project. The R.O.K. envisages a substantial
      enlargement of participation in the project in the following years,     
      although new investment was suspended following the North's testing of a
      nuclear device in October 2006.                                         
    * Tourism: R.O.K.-organized tours to Mt. Kumgang in North Korea began in  
      1998. Since then, more than a million visitors have traveled to Mt.     
      Kumgang.                                                                
    * Infrastructure Development: Although east and west coast railroad and   
      roads links have been reconnected across the DMZ, neither rail link has 
      been tested. The roads crossing the DMZ are used on a daily basis between
      South Korea and Mt. Kumgang, as well as to the Kaesong Industrial       
      Complex.                                                                
                                                                       
  Two-way trade between North and South Korea, legalized in 1988, hit almost  
  $1.35 billion in 2006, up 27.8% from 2005. This total included a substantial
  quantity of non-trade goods provided to the North as aid (fertilizer, etc.) 
  or as part of inter-Korean cooperative projects. According to R.O.K. figures,
  about 60% of the total trade consisted of commercial transactions, much of  
  that based on processing-on-commission arrangements. The R.O.K. is North    
  Korea's second-largest trading partner.                                     
                                                                       
  FOREIGN RELATIONS                                                           
  In August 1991, South Korea joined the United Nations along with North Korea
  and is active in most UN specialized agencies and many international forums.
  The Republic of Korea also hosted major international events such as the 1988
  Summer Olympics, the 2002 World Cup Soccer Tournament (co-hosted with Japan),
  and the 2002 Second Ministerial Conference of the Community of Democracies. 
                                                                       
  Economic considerations have a high priority in Korean foreign policy. The  
  R.O.K. seeks to build on its economic accomplishments to increase its       
  regional and global role. It is a founding member of the Asia-Pacific       
  Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum and chaired the organization in 2005.