The other Side of the Wall

If one takes a stroll in the Toksu Palace (德壽宮, 덕수궁, Toksukung) here in Seoul these days, one will find Sokjojon (石造殿, 석조전, Stone House) undergoing reconstruction. Seoul citizens recently welcomed the news that the blueprint for Sokjojon was discovered, and the royal structure will be reconstructed according to its original design. On the cover of the blueprint, one can find the map of the palace at the time of King Kojong (高宗,고종, 1852-1919, r.1863-1907) as well as the history of Sokjojon.
In 1898, King Kojong decided to build a Western-style palace. The year before, the king had returned to the palace after taking refuge at the Russian Embassy for nearly a year. The Kingdom of Choson (朝鮮國, 조선국, Chosonkuk) was so fragile that even the king could not protect his own life and had to escape to the safety of a foreign delegation. At the end of that humiliating experience, King Kojong declared the Great Han Empire (大韓帝國, 대한제국, Taehanjeguk), Choson was no longer a kingdom that needed approval from China but an empire of its own right. The first project of the empire was Sokjojon, which was to be the main palace for the emperor. In 1910, the imperial palace was completed, but Choson was annexed to Japan. The emperor started to build a palace without realizing that his empire was crumbling. The blueprint of Sokjojon conjures complicated feelings about history.
The emperor may, of course, have needed a new palace in order to restore the dignity of his empire. Perhaps, he felt Toksu Palace was too small. Nevertheless, did he really think a new palace was a top priority? At the time, Choson was barely surviving. The people were in distress, and the fate of the country was a candle flickering in the wind. Only a few years earlier, in 1894, Isabella Lucy Bird (Mrs. Bishop, 1831-1904), a member of the Royal Geographical Society, travelled all over Choson and wrote Korea and Her Neighbours (1898). She wrote that Seoul was pervaded by the foulest smell and it was hard to believe that the capital city was so filthy. Drains were filled with sewage from households.
When the people were in misery and the nation declining on the other side of the palace wall, the emperor was building a new palace. Enlightenment activist Yun Chi-ho (尹致昊, 윤치호, 1864-1945) lamented in his diary that the emperor was building a “toy palace.” Even if the cost of building the palace was insufficient to save the empire, King Kojong should have used every possible means to buy weapons, build railroads and create industries. He believed the king was the state, but the eyes of the king could not see beyond the palace perimeter.

Toksu Palace from the other side of the wall

The tragic fate of Sokjojon mirrors Korea’s reality today. Korean may be building a new palace without looking over the wall. More accurately, the leaders of the country are immersed in building their own palaces—just like King Kojong.
Last year citizens of Seoul voted on free school lunches. The result was directly related to the future of Korea. Today, the United States and many European countries are struggling with their economies. One of the main problems is oversized national debts due to unplanned financial spending. Politicians liberally used money to please the voters. It is only natural that President Lee Myung-bak (李明博, 이명박, Yi Myong-bak, b.1941, p.2008) emphasizes healthy government finances. This is not an issue of “let’s have children eat free.” Rather, it could be the beginning of the break in the levee. Mayor Oh Se-hoon (吳世勳, 오세훈, O Se-hun, b.1961) was trying to put a finger in the dike, all alone, just like the Dutch boy who saved Holland.
However, no one went forward to help Oh. Even the party with which he is affiliated was not backing him up. Why? His supposed supporters were only thinking about their own palaces. “I might run for president next year, so what are the consequences? I barely got a party executive position, and I don’t want to risk it.” They all had their own calculations. Without caring about the future of the nation, they were building their palaces. They were no different from King Kojong, whose empire fell before the completion of the palace.
Conglomerate owners too are not much different from King Kojong. The world outside their palaces is full of criticism and complaints. It is about time they look over the wall and see what is going on in the real world. They should not just proceed in the name of free competition. The American business magnate Warren Edward Buffett (b.1930) said that those who earn more than US$ 1 million a year should be taxed heavily. Of course, that is not a prescription to revive the US economy, but Buffett has certainly looked over the wall and knows noblesse oblige. Former Grand National Party chairman Chung Mong-joon (鄭夢準, 정몽준, Chong Mong-jun, b. 1951) recently set up the Asan Sharing Foundation with a fund of 500 billion won (US$ 435 million) saying: “Corporate Korea has been successful, but when the community of citizens is damaged, businesses will fail.” He is right. When the streets are full of foul odours and suffering, the rich have been building palaces within their walls. They should not forget that King Kojong was deprived of the palace even before living there.
Koreans need to see if they are obsessed with building glitzy palaces, especially those with money and power. Are they turning away from the community outside the wall because of their personal interests? Free meals for Seoul children are all about Korean greater philosophy. Koreans have a sense of responsibility to take care of their children. Should they transfer the bulging debt to the next generation just to pursue a little more comfort now? Koreans should not be locked in the palace of the present and fail to look over the wall into the future.

Giorgio Olivotto
Photo by Giorgio Olivotto
Seoul, Korea
January 22, 2012