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Civil Society and Democratization in South Korea

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Society and Democracy in South Korea and Indonesia

Part of the book series: Security, Development and Human Rights in East Asia ((SDHRP))

Abstract

This chapter identifies and analyzes two overlapping accounts of the role of civil society in South Korea’s democratization. These accounts both portray civic organizations as productive partners of the state in pursuit of the common goal of further consolidating democratic society, rather than as antagonistic opponents of an anti-democratic state. However, they reach quite different judgments about the roles of the state and civil society in recent political history. Despite these differences, the chapter shows, bringing the two accounts into conversation with each other enriches the study of democratization in South Korea: it shows that political development is a process involving both the state and civil society.

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Acknowledgements

I am grateful to the Editor, Professor Brendan Howe, and a peer reviewer for valuable feedback and thoughtful suggestions for improving this chapter.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Deakin University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

    David Hundt

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  1. David Hundt
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Graduate School of International Studies, Ewha Womans University, Seoul, Korea (Republic of)

    Brendan Howe

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Hundt, D. (2022). Civil Society and Democratization in South Korea. In: Howe, B. (eds) Society and Democracy in South Korea and Indonesia. Security, Development and Human Rights in East Asia. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-06267-4_4

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