In South Korea, both the country’s most important business leader and its previous president are behind bars, the former convicted of corruption, the other on trial for it.
The situation may not be unprecedented in states experiencing coups or collapses. But South Korea is a democracy, standing squarely on its own feet. The trials have been conducted by an independent judiciary. The arrest of former president Park Geun-hye followed citizens’ peaceful demonstrations against bribery and cronyism. Last week’s conviction of Lee Jae-yong, the vice-chairman and de facto leader of the Samsung chaebol, has not — so far — been derailed by that group’s immense influence. South Korea, a country long characterised by too-close relationships between corporations and government, could be in the opening stages of a bloodless and lawful revolution.
Much remains to be done to invigorate both democracy and business in South Korea, and ensure the proper distance between the two.