[KS] Confucian Student Strike
Frank M. Tedesco
tedesco at uriel.net
Tue Jul 14 23:39:37 EDT 1998
> [Click Into the Hermit Kingdom (24)]
> Sungkyunkwan Students on Strike =
> 07/13(=BF=F9) 14:56
> =
> By Yang Sung-jin
> =
> Staff Reporter
> =
> Korea's two leading labor groups said last Friday they wo=
uld
> jointly stage a nationwide strike this week to protest ma=
ss
> layoffs under the government's plans to restructure the
> bruised economy.
> =
> Demonstrating on the streets in the face of opposition fr=
om
> riot police is not a pleasant experience. Nevertheless, i=
t is
> a tempting option because, if well executed, demonstratio=
ns
> can grab the public attention fairly quickly.
> =
> The students of Sungkyunkwan (National Confucian Academy)=
,
> the highest educational institution in the Choson Dynasty=
,
> were also well aware of the enormous power of protests.
> =
> These elite students, preparing for the state examination=
to
> become government officials, had their own governing body=
> called ``chae-hoe,'' which provided the venue for discuss=
ions
> of internal and external affairs.
> =
> The chae-hoe wielded strong authority. All the students
> enrolled at the school were required to attend their meet=
ings
> and violators were subject to harsh punishments.
> =
> When an external issue concerning Sungkyunkwan arose, the=
y
> generally held an emergency meeting to come up with a
> countermeasure. Generally, there were two options. The fi=
rst
> was ``yuso,'' formal appeal by students calling for the k=
ing
> to address the issue. The second was ``kwondang,'' a stri=
ke
> by all students.
> =
> When the first option was selected, Sungkyunkwan students=
> chose a leader to appear before the king and file the yus=
o,
> which was typically aimed at the irregularities and
> mismanagement of the government. The document contained t=
he
> students' arguments and an expression of their refusal to=
> cave in to the threat of authorities.
> =
> In the event that the yuso did not work, students opted f=
or a
> kwondang, filing out of their dormitory en masse after bo=
wing
> four times in front of the shrine of Confucius in the
> compound of the school.
> =
> Fearing that the highly sacred symbol of the ruling Confu=
cian
> ideology would be left unprotected, officials working for=
> Sungkyunkwan entered the school compound to guard the shr=
ine
> until the turmoil was over.
> =
> But persuading the disgruntled students to stop their
> embarrassing demonstration was nowhere near as easy. Firs=
t,
> school officials called the students to come back to the
> school compound. Then, the students who answered the call=
> were welcomed by the school officials who delivered the
> king's message _ usually a conciliatory, gentle persuasio=
n.
> =
> If that measure failed, government officials were dispatc=
hed
> to break the deadlock, carrying the revised version of th=
e
> king's message.
> =
> King vs. Students
> =
> The king was supposed to make some concessions to the
> student's demands in an effort to normalize the school sy=
stem
> and preserve the shrine of Confucius.
> =
> However, a question remains: Why did the almighty Choson
> kings give in to protesting, yet powerless students?
> =
> In 1611, King Kwanghaegun disqualified a Sungkyunkwan stu=
dent
> named Lee Suk-yong from applying for future state
> examinations as he had become embroiled in a scandal. Thi=
s
> highly-publicized incident immediately sparked a controve=
rsy
> among students and government officials, resulting in
> numerous appeals and counter-appeals, not to mention the
> dreaded kwondang.
> =
> Most of the appeals directed to the king called for the
> restoration of Lee's right to take the state exam. Yet th=
e
> king stood firm in his convictions, showing no sign of a
> willingness to forgive the offending student.
> =
> According to the Annals of the Choson Dynasty, the Office=
of
> the Censor-General issued an appeal urging the king to
> sympathize with the striking students: ``The king should
> embrace the students with a generous heart. Only then wil=
l
> the morale of the students and scholars be restored along=
> with the free flow of public opinion. Concessions by the =
king
> are in order because the future fate of the nation hinges=
on
> the morale of the students.''
> =
> In 1649, another kwondang incident took place. This time,=
an
> official named Yu Chik made remarks downplaying the
> importance of the shrine of Confucius, prompting Sungkyun=
kwan
> students to organize a rally to publicly criticize the
> official.
> =
> Worse, King Hyojong delivered a message aimed at admonish=
ing
> the students' reckless act, pushing them to resort to the=
> kwondang.
> =
> Hearing that Sungkyunkwan had been abandoned, the king
> regretted his mistake and changed his tone, sending a
> messenger in hopes of winning back the favor of the prick=
ly
> students.
> =
> The king's efforts paid off and the students returned. Th=
e
> peace, however, did not last long. A student named Park
> Sae-chae filed an appeal with the king explaining the
> students' stance and urging the monarch to make a clear
> statement of his position on the incident.
> =
> Unfortunately, Park inserted in his appeal a misguided
> passage that read: ``Punishing and forgiving the person w=
ho
> slandered the wise is up to the scholars without office, =
not
> the government officials or the royal court.''
> =
> The phrase, ``not the government officials or the royal
> court,'' hurt the pride of the king badly, worsening the
> overall situation beyond Park's ability to repair it. The=
> king took the highly unusual step of returning the appeal=
> without replying, a strategy designed to criticize Park's=
> imprudent remarks.
> =
> Chicken Game
> =
> In response to the king's anger, the students staged anot=
her
> strike, storming out of the school compound. As expected,=
the
> strike deeply infuriated the king.
> =
> ``Due to my error in judgment, the students have left
> Sungkyunkwan again. In the beginning, I realized my own
> mistake, and conceded to the demands of the students, ask=
ing
> them to return. But this time, they have tried to test me=
,
> which is absurd by any standard,'' King Hyojong said ster=
nly.
> =
> A high-ranking official named Cho Ik countered, ``The
> students are neither to be ordered nor to be threatened. =
If
> Your Majesty shows generosity, the students will eventual=
ly
> give up their strike.'''
> =
> Lee Hu-won, a Sungkyunkwan teacher, supported Cho's argum=
ent
> by adding ``It has long been felt that the king should
> recognize the importance of student morale. The wrongdoin=
g of
> the students is like the behavior of unruly children and,=
as
> a generous parent, the king should teach them not to repe=
at
> this misbehavior.''
> =
> The king replied, ``The use of the kwondang by Sungkyunkw=
an
> students has a long history. But no kwondang was as
> ungrateful and inconsistent as this one. Although I
> appreciate the old customs, I cannot but stand my ground
> firmly in the face of such disorder.''
> =
> As there was no sign of improvement, Sungkyunkwan student=
Lee
> Paek-rin filed another appeal with the king, explaining P=
ark
> Sae-chae's mistake.
> =
> ``Park is young and therefore inexperienced at writing in=
> accordance with proper style and due courtesy. That is wh=
y
> his writing lacks reasonable logic, even though he had no=
> intention of making such a grave mistake,'' Lee said.
> =
> Lee further stated that the students had proceeded with t=
heir
> walkout only because they realized they had done an
> irreversible affront to the king. ``But Your Majesty did =
not
> forgive our wrongdoing at all, even calling us sinners
> outright, which utterly disheartened us. What we hope now=
is
> that Your Majesty will relent and show generosity toward
> us,'' Lee said.
> =
> King Hyojong finally accepted the request from Lee, wrapp=
ing
> up this tedious series of battles with students.
> =
> ------------------------------------------------------------=
--------
> (C) COPYRIGHT 1998 THE HANKOOKILBO
http://www.korealink.co.kr/14_6/9807/t4651264.htm
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
More information about the Koreanstudies
mailing list