韩国新村运动Saemaul Undong-English(2004)

Saemaul Undong in KoreaAt the end of the Asian continent is the Korean peninsula. 5000 years of culture and heritage is a part of the Korean people. A country colonized at the end of the 19th century. A land divided in half as a result of the cold war. A country that started as the poorest and now is the 12th largest economical powerhouse. The host country of the 88 Olympics and the 2002 FIFA World Cup. From rags to riches, Korea has shown enormous potential. We will like to show the basis of what made all this possible - Saemaul Undong.Korea's Saemaul UndongDespite all the invasions and war, Korea has maintained a unique culture that was not influenced by any of these incidents.However, the Japanese annexation at the end of the 19th century and the Korean War took away all that. Until the late 1960's, the Korean society was uprooted by differences in ideas and ravished by poverty. The per capita GNP at that time was 85 dollars. The majority of Korean people barely had enough to buy food.Since the Korean economy was based on agriculture, consistent floods and draught caused nationwide famine.Lethargy, chaos and frustration defined the Korean society at that time. The major concern of the government was to thwart poverty. Export manufactured products the main source of income growth. The 5-year economic plan that started in 1962 started to show results, and from the 1970s, the Korean economy began to take off.Due to this economic expansion, young people started flocking into the cities. In the 1960s, the government worked in increasing the production of foodstuffs. But premodern living environment still remained in rural communities.Until 1970, 80% of the rural communities had thatched roofs, and 80% were living with the help of oil lamps in place of electricity.The Birth of Saemaul UndongAfter the floods of 1969, the people were repairing roofs and roads without government aid. This caused great inspiration to President Park Jung Hee to help the rural community.President Park realized that government aid would be useless unless the people decided to do things byself-helping spirit. Moreover, motivating the rural community's self help and cooperation was the key to developing the rural areas.These ideas were the basis for Saemaul Undong.Implementing Saemaul UndongDuring the 1970's, the government had no funds to start the project. However, with a little government aid, there were many basic needs that could be improved. The government experimentally proposes the 10 major projects for improving rural areas. These include expanding and straightening local roads, improving roofs, kitchens and fences, opening laundry facilities, community wells, building bridges and improving water systems.And the 35 thousand rural villages received an average of 355 sacks of cement for free. The projects were under the sole custody of the village council. 16,000 villages, which are more than half of all the villages in the rural area, showed major improvements.The majority of the projects were done by village funds and used self-labor. During the second year of the nationwide project, villages with major improvements were supplied with extra 500 sacks of cement and another 1 ton of steel wire by the government. The government decided to help villages that help themselves.Thatched roofs and mud fences were replaced with modern tiles and cemented walls. Roadsides were expanded, riverbanks were repaired, and bridges were built in rural villages.The villages developed with blinding speed. The rural people regained their confidence. Lethargic neighbors were stimulated to develop their own villages. Korea's rural areas showed signs of urbanization and development.Gaining confidence on the 3rd year, the government decided to split the 35 thousand villages into 3 categories depending on their level of development. And there was a difference in the amount of government aid in the 3 different categories.Environment projects increased in size as the years progressed. Hosing and other facilities were restructured to fit the rural community. Modernization in kitchen and bathrooms along with new water pipelines were implemented. Community and public facilities such as village centers, multi purpose recreational centers along with public baths, warehouses and other public facilities were built.The success of the environmental projects led to the projects for increase productivity. The people repaved the small paths into roads, so farming vehicles could make way into the fields. The government played a major role for the increase in rural income. In 1974, the rural output reached unprecedented levels.Agricultural education caused a revolution in farming methods. Conventional farming methods for raisingrice and barely were radically changed to composite farming.Making agriculture complexes for profitable products such as mushrooms and tobacco helped to increase the overall income. Using greenhouses allowed the farmers to harvest fresh vegetables during the winter. Making community work places enabled the people to reduce unnecessary money loss due to individual labor.Raising cows, pigs and chicken allowed for more profits. Fishing villages changed their production methods from fishing to breeding fish.Moreover, developing watering systems, cleaning the streams and farming areas were the key developing points for increasing the productivity of the rural community.Big projects such as building roads and sewage systems were done as a joint venture with neighboring villages to reduce costs.Moreover, the government built factories at the rural areas to increase the income of rural areas. Saemaul factories gave women a workplace and a chance to increase the total income.As a result, rural income steadily increased. In 1974, the rural income surpassed the urban income. In 1978, 98% of all villages became economically self-reliant.The success of Saemaul Undong in the rural areas caused a spread to non-farming areas such as schools, work places, cities and factories, along with many other fields.The cities started the projects to stop corruption and to build a new metropolitan paradise.The three campaigns of Saemaul Undong consist of 3 components. They are mental, behavioral, and environmental initiatives.The mental campaign include better ties with neighbors, inheriting and advancing traditional ethics propped up by filial piety and strengthening community awareness.The behavioral campaign emphasized on public order on the streets, positive interactions, public manners, and prohibiting drunken misconduct.The environmental campaign stressed cleanliness of the area around an individual's home or business, controlling the street environment and developing greener cities and streams.At the workplace, the project concentrated on making healthy values and beliefs along with a decent social interaction between co-workers. Creating a oneness within the workplace, helping the rural community, helping the homeless, and staying in line were some of the project's objectives.The factory Saemaul Undong directed its energy to restoring the trust and affection of consumers and the general public as a whole.Emphasis was placed on consolidating the foundation for industrial peace and coexistence by bridging the gap in value systems between labor and management, and establishing sound corporate ethics. Moreover, rural community service was another way of establishing sound moral ethics.The Saemaul schools were the foundations of the Saemaul spirit. Students learned about Saemaul Undong and its contributions to society.Villages and work places provided further education of Library Saemaul Undong along with places for recreational activities.Especially, the rural libraries provided information for new methods of farming. This was a major breakthrough for the rural community, and was the reason for increased income.What is Saemaul Undong?Saemaul Undong did not start off as a major project. After 3 years of experimentation, the government realized that without the self-will of the people, Saemaul Undong would lead to failure.Saemaul Undong is not only an action based project, but also a mental reform based on the conviction that anything can be done and the will that we can do it.In other words, Saemaul Undong is a struggle for a better life, not only for the individual but also for the benefit of the society as a whole.Wealth is not only a material concept, but also a mental one. It is important not only for the people to lead better lives but also for their descendants as well. It is a project to build a foundation for a better life. A better life for the family and neighbors, along with society and the nation is the goal for Saemaul Undong. The 3 main values for Saemaul Undong are diligence, self-help and cooperation.Diligence leads to sincerity. As the phrase, "The early bird catches the worm." shows diligence leads to sincerity, a value that doesn't allow for falseness, hypocrisy and vanity.Self-help defines one's fate based on one's effort. The proverb, "Heaven helps those who help themselves." shows that one is the master of one's fate. One has to be totally independent and must not ask for help from the outside.Cooperation is based on a pursuit for community growth. "Two heads are better than one." As this proverb shows, community growth should be a team effort.Therefore, these 3 values and ethics of Saemaul Undong are the essence for a new society and building a prosperous nation.Ultimately, the goal of Saemaul Undong is building a united community and nation and storing peace and order to mankind.How did Saemaul Undong Practice?The prototype Saemaul Undong started as the government was being in charge while giving self-governance to the village council. The Ministry of Internal Affairs was in charge of the project. Other branches of the government took minor roles in the project for a smooth operation. County councils andprovince council also took part in this project. Town and village councils made a village executive committee to ensure the smooth operation of the project and the villages had a male and female Saemaul leader along with a municipal development committee.The development committee had a division of women and a division of youths along with other subcommittees. The village development committee made new plans and ran the other subcommittees. The committee's mission was to increase the income of the village and implementing new values and beliefs.Saemaul projects were based on the county council's decision and was needed authorization from the magistrate.The criteria for selecting new projects were based on the necessity for the residents, complementation of regional conditions serving all residents in the project area and the long-term effects of the project. Implementation of the projects starts as raising as much of the necessary funds as the residents can afford, applying for and receiving external assistance in the forms of raw materials, money and technology. Public servants are asked to visit, at least twice a month to check and guide the progress of the national initiative in their jurisdiction.A public employee who is a division chief is briefed monthly and there is an annual progress report. Stage evaluation was an important part of Saemaul Undong. There is a pre project report, an interim report and a post project report. The effects of the previous project were taken in deep consideration for the development of new projects. The post project reports were used widely as a merit system for village with achievements.Educating Saemaul LeadersAfter a year of experimentation, the government recognizes the importance of a leader. Villages with a leader followed the national guidelines properly but villages without one spent their resources uselessly. Therefore, the development and poor implementation of Saemaul Undong needed dedicated leaders for the cause.Since the government realized the importance for a leader, the government opened the training institute for Saemaul leaders in 1972. Each village had a male and female appointee.The leadership training emphasized on self-sacrifice and setting a positive example. Education took place in a communal camp, where they would learn teamwork and cooperation.Interactive education done by sharing success stories during small group discussions, and offers for continued guidance and assistance were given to the leaders. The leaders after the training were the main source of leadership and guidance for the other villagers.During a time where female involvement was limited, the involvement of the female population broughtradical changes. The women raised funds for the development of the village. They saved rice and put their energy in city-beautiful movements. Moreover, the women helped to ban gambling and drinking. The number of bars and pubs started to decline during this time.The education that was aimed for Saemaul leaders started to influence politicians, media people, religious leaders and foreigners. Politician's leaders that didn't show interest in Saemaul Undong were highly influenced by Saemaul educational system. This was a cause in an increase for Saemaul Undong funds and the reason why Saemaul Undong became a nationwide project.The Success of Saemaul Undong and its ProblemsThe success of Saemaul Undong has two major reasons.First was the policy of government using a competitive system that caused total involvement of the rural community. The inspired leadership of the government and the funding was a stimulus for the villagers. Moreover, praising and rewarding successful villages was another motivation for success.Second were the dedication of the Saemaul leaders and the total involvement of the villagers. The people were surprised by the results and felt accomplishment. This accomplishment led to self-confidence and this confidence gave birth to a purpose for success. People became diligent and understood the true meaning of cooperation.There was great success, but every achievement has its dark side.The total involvement of the government was the major source of success in the beginning but became the major setback.Standardized government planning based on the merit system became another problem. Success was only based on material wealth. This caused people to rely on outside funding and was a cause for the passive attitude of the people. Moreover, it was a major cause for environmental destruction along with the loss of tradition and culture.Challenges, endeavors and pioneering are the main ingredients of human history.In any era, in any country that has a successful race and people, it has a strong foundation of moral ethics and drive for success.A better life! A better life for the future!It has been 30 years since that slogan has driven the Korean people toward success. From a country with GNP less than 100 dollars to a country with a GNP of 10,000 dollars, this is the miracle done by the hands of the Korean people.Now for the prosperity for mankind, Saemaul Undong will provide the foundation. It is the wish of the Korean people that Saemaul Undong will be a key part in providing the world a chance to prosper andthrive. Thank you.。