[Desk Column] Death and Seogeong

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Pil-su] Jeon Du-hwan has passed away. He was 91 years old by Korean age. Until just two years ago, he spent his final years in good health, even frequenting golf courses. Although we live in an era of 100-year lifespans, this can be considered a full life.

He is strongly associated with the image of a dictator who fired guns at citizens, but there are still supporters who say, "At least he developed the economy." Even a leading presidential candidate considered paying respects with this perception, so the number of such supporters cannot be ignored. The number of media outlets that titled their obituary articles as "Former President Jeon Du-hwan Passes Away" is as many as those that wrote "Jeon Du-hwan’s Death."

During his presidency, the economy was indeed booming. Some belittle this by saying it was due to the "three lows (fall in crude oil, dollar, and international interest rates)" effect and the sacrifices of workers, but the economic indicators were genuinely good. The inflation rate, which was 28.7% in 1980, stabilized to single digits. In 1984, it even dropped to 2.3%. The unemployment rate, which was 5.2% in 1980, fell to 2.5% by 1988 when he stepped down, and the trade balance turned positive for the first time in history. The economic growth rate, which had fallen into the negative due to the oil shock, remained between 7% and 13% throughout his tenure.

The comprehensive stock price index, which later became the foundation of the current "KOSPI," was created during this time with 100 as the base. Until 1985, it hovered around the 100 range, then began to rise ahead of the 1986 Asian Games, soaring to the 600 range by early 1988 when he left office. These figures explain why some people feel nostalgic about those times as a period of prosperity.

Despite these achievements(?), the reason he received more criticism than praise is clear. He deployed the military to fire on citizens demanding democratization, killing many. In Gwangju, where tanks, helicopters, and machine guns were used, there were 163 deaths, 166 missing persons, and over 5,000 victims. Many were tortured and died during the democratization movement.

He privately enjoyed the fruits of economic growth. He amassed tens of billions of won in bribes alone. Considering the economy was about 1/20th of today’s size, this would be worth several trillion won in today’s value. He also dismantled chaebols that fell out of favor. Since the highest authority actively collected bribes, the scale of power-related corruption was enormous. Jang Young-ja, who caused the largest promissory note fraud in Korean history worth 600 billion won, was his relative by marriage. At that time, the capital of commercial banks was 70 billion won. After the regime changed, the scale of illicit wealth was revealed and confiscated, but he hid assets and refused to pay. Thanks to this, he lived a luxurious life until his death, enjoying golf with close aides.

In ancient China’s Spring and Autumn period, there was a bandit named "Do-cheok." He commanded thousands of followers and was a great bandit. He killed people daily and even made sashimi from human livers. Yet, he lived a life of luxury and longevity. In contrast, the brothers Baek Yi and Suk Je, who gave up their royal claims to each other and left their country to be revered as righteous men, starved to death on Mount Suyang after King Wu of Zhou destroyed the Yin dynasty.

"Does the way of heaven truly exist or not?" This was the lament written by Sima Qian when recounting the stories of Baek Yi, Suk Je, and Do-cheok.