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Prosecution reform and the politics of faking democracy in South Korea.
- Source :
- Critical Asian Studies; Jun2021, Vol. 53 Issue 2, p259-283, 25p
- Publication Year :
- 2021
-
Abstract
- A public struggle in South Korea around prosecution reform brings into focus a deeper battle between forces seeking to make the state more responsive to ordinary people and those aiming to preserve the status quo. Opponents of prosecution reform turned to a mode of politics that appropriated the styles and symbols of democracy to justify the obstruction of reforms that would break down a key authoritarian legacy and source of entrenched privilege. They deployed multiple methods of "faking" democracy: assuming the mantle of anti-corruption champions, drawing on tropes from the anti-authoritarian opposition of the past, and normalizing marginal views. The politics of prosecution reform illuminates the mass struggle that defines South Korea's democracy and also points to a dangerous and subtle mode of politics that is increasingly visible around the world yet under-appreciated in most approaches to thinking about democracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Subjects :
- SOCIAL unrest
PROSECUTION
DEMOCRACY
AUTHORITARIANISM
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 14672715
- Volume :
- 53
- Issue :
- 2
- Database :
- Complementary Index
- Journal :
- Critical Asian Studies
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 150497626
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1080/14672715.2021.1890999