著者

縄倉 晶雄

出版者

明治大学

雑誌

研究活動スタート支援

巻号頁・発行日

2017-08-25

著者

縄倉 晶雄

出版者

北東アジア学会

雑誌

北東アジア地域研究 (ISSN:1882692X)

巻号頁・発行日

no.20, pp.1-16, 2014

---

This paper analyzes how South Korea's pro-environmental policies in the 1990s worked on its bi-polarized rural communities. In the 1980s, South Korea's government pursued mechanization of agricultural works and extension of farmlands per family. While these measures succeeded in the improvement of agricultural performance nationwide, they were criticized to worsen income inequality among farmers and distort rural communities. In the 1990s, the government attempted pro-environmental agriculture with (1) organic farming, (2) direct payment to peasants and local groups of farmers, and (3) green tourism. The government aimed that farmers revitalize their local communities in the process of these measures. Despite the introduction of pro-environmental policies, however, Korea's rural communities were remained unequal and distorted. Because the introduction of new farming technology was complicated for less-educated peasants, the inequality among farmers sustained. And, more importantly, because the government's policies were void of concrete and exact steps of decreasing inequality and forming cooperation among farmers, the farmers had poor incentives to cooperate with their local neighbors.

著者

縄倉 晶雄

出版者

北東アジア学会

雑誌

北東アジア地域研究 (ISSN:1882692X)

巻号頁・発行日

no.19, pp.21-34, 2013-06-30

---

Though there have been many studies on Saemaul Undong, a government-led campaign on rural development in 1970s' Korea, almost of them have focused on its economic. Meanwhile, few studies have argued the social changes of the rural areas under Saemaul Undong. In addition, studies which focus on rural policies in the 1970s Korea other than Saemaul Undong have also been rare. This study reviews how Saemaul Undong and the rural financial policies in 1970s Korea worked on the country's informal rural finance based on local communities. The official discourses of Saemaul Undong insisted the empowerment of local communities in rural areas. If it was implemented correctly by the government, seen from the perspective of the framework of social capital, the rural residents' interests gained from their communities are thought to be increased. However, this study reveals that the rural residents' financial interests from their local communities were decreased by the policies. Though the rural residents had accessed the opportunities of moneymaking through their local communities until the beginning of Saemaul Undong and rural financial policies related to it in 1970, the policies decreased the opportunities through the reduction of financial interest rate implemented in the name of 'financial modernization.