Fearing the Decline of South Korea’s First Female President

The widening scandal President Park Geun-hye, South Korea’s first female president, has become embroiled in has created an environment some women and gender equality advocates worry will poison the prospects for future female presidential aspirants. Ongoing revelations of Park’s connection to her friend Choi Soon-sil’s alleged use of state power to extort businesses has led to mass demonstrations and increasing calls for her resignation from men and women alike. Some Korean women have expressed concern about the failure of her presidency being unfairly generalized to cast doubt on the abilities of female executives as a whole, and as advocates have drawn attention to data showing increased gender inequality across key metrics since Park took office in 2012, some advocates have sought to separate Park’s historic achievement from the effects of her presidency. The New York Times examines the complicated gender dynamics of anti-Park sentiment and fears of its impact on the future of gender equality in politics and beyond.

Read:
“Gender Colors Outrage Over Scandal Involving South Korea’s President” (The New York Times)

Additional:
“Anti-Park protests flare up across the country; 600,000 people gathered in Seoul” (The Korea Times)

(Image Credit: Lee Jin-man/Associated Press, via The New York Times)