1 week Ago By The Korea Herald
There’s a saying: “If you can’t avoid it, enjoy it.” I find myself preferring this phrase over the oft-repeated notion that South Koreans possess some innate ability — “a crisis-overcoming DNA,” as it's sometimes phrased. That idea, while flattering on the surface, risks normalizing the presence of crises themselves, as if enduring and overcoming them is something we should accept as our national identity, rather than striving to prevent them in the first place.
These two contrasting phrases have been on my mind since the Cabinet Council’s announcement that a presidential election will be held on June 3 — well ahead of the normal five-year schedule. This decision comes in the wake of the Constitutional Court's ruling to remove former President Yoon Suk Yeol from office for causing instability in both the government and the daily lives of the people. So here is my advice today: If you can’t avoid it, embrace it, make the most of it — and, if you can, transform it into a blessing for yourself, your family and the generations to come.
I realize that calling this turbulent process a “blessing” may sound, at best, overly optimistic and, at worst, insensitive. After all, South Koreans have already paid and will continue to pay a steep price — emotionally, socially and financially — for a crisis that could have been avoided had Yoon simply completed his term and exited peacefully in May 2027. Nevertheless, I stand by the word “blessing” when referring to the upcoming June 3 election.
In a deeper, more meaningful sense, it is precisely that — a rare and valuable opportunity for the people of South Korea to reevaluate, reconnect and redefine their future. It is not just an institutional formality; it’s a moment to listen not only to politicians and experts but also to our neighbors, coworkers and fellow citizens. It allows us to ask: What kind of country do we want to be, and how do we get there? Originally, we would have had to wait until around March 2027 to engage in this kind of collective introspection and debate, when the next scheduled election was supposed to be held.
But now, due to extraordinary circumstances, we are being granted a head start — at a moment when South Korea is confronting an array of complex, unprecedented challenges that touch every corner of our society. In any functioning democracy, nationwide elections are far more than calendar-based events. They are the lifeblood of political legitimacy and a powerful expression of popular sovereignty.
Elections form the bridge between the will of the people and the structure of the state. Their importance spans the economic, social and diplomatic realms, shaping the direction of the nation far beyond the electoral cycle. Against this backdrop, the topics open for public discussion during this campaign period should be as broad and inclusive as possible.
As long as we agree to focus on what truly matters for our shared future — rather than becoming mired in the bitterness of the past —there is no issue too big or too small to bring to the table. Setting aside the political controversies involving the recently impeached president, I believe few would disagree with my assessment of the most pressing challenges facing South Korea today: the loss of momentum in economic growth, a deepening demographic crisis, an expanding gap with artificial intelligence leaders and growing strain on our outdated system of governance. Underlying structural problems Let’s begin with the economy.
The declining momentum in economic growth is far more serious than many realize. It’s not just a matter of lower gross domestic product numbers; it's a deeply rooted issue that touches nearly every facet of society. If you examine the frustrations and inefficiencies across social services, youth employment, innovation and even education, you’ll often find the same root cause: the rapid and persistent weakening of our economic engine.
This slowdown is fundamentally different from the kind of cyclical downturns we’ve weathered in the past — temporary dips in growth rates that recover with policy adjustments or changes in global demand. What we’re facing now is structural. This kind of prolonged deceleration isn’t easily reversible with quick fixes like fiscal stimulus or short-term job programs.
It stems from deeper issues: productivity stagnation, market saturation, labor inefficiencies and a hesitance to invest in transformative technologies. Closely linked to this is the second major challenge: the demographic crisis. Despite years of massive public investment and policy experimentation, South Korea continues to experience one of the world’s steepest declines in birth rates and fastest aging populations.
This demographic trajectory isn’t just an anomaly — it’s a warning siren. It places immense stress on everything from pension sustainability and health care systems to the education sector and labor market dynamics. These pressures are why the debate around pension reform, for example, has dragged on unresolved for years.
With fewer young people to support a growing number of retirees, the social contract itself is at risk. And unless we take bold, innovative steps to stabilize our population trajectory, we’ll continue heading toward an unsustainable future. Third, there is the widening gap in artificial intelligence innovation with global leaders.
This is not merely a matter of technological prestige — it is about the future of national competitiveness and sovereignty. AI is more than a tool; it’s a paradigm shift that will define how societies function and how nations compete. And unfortunately, while we've been distracted by political gridlock and internal conflict, other nations — such as the United States, China and key European countries — have surged ahead.
Every month of delay only widens the gap, making it harder for us to catch up later. Lastly, I want to highlight the increasing strain on South Korea’s current governance system. Designed hastily in 1987 to prevent a return to military dictatorship, our political framework has remained largely unchanged despite the drastically different challenges we face today.
The system may have served its transitional purpose well, but now it shows signs of fatigue — fragmented authority, hyperpartisanship and policy paralysis. It's time to ask whether our governing structures are truly suited to meet the demands of the century. In this light, the June 3 presidential election becomes more than a reaction to a political crisis — it is an inflection point.
It’s a chance to reset, to rethink and to reimagine what South Korea can become. The opportunity did not come by choice; it was born from disruption. But the choice of how we respond — how we move forward — is entirely up to us.
So I’ll say it once more, with hope and conviction: If you can’t avoid it, enjoy it — and more than that, turn it into a lasting blessing. Not just for today, but for all the tomorrows to come. Yoo Choon-sik Yoo Choon-sik worked for nearly 30 years at Reuters, including as the chief Korea economics correspondent, and briefly worked as a business strategy consultant.
The views expressed here are the writer’s own. — Ed..
