Topic: 2025 – Authoritarianism and Democracy
Country: Republic of Korea
Delegate Name: Chloe Falkenstern
The rise of autocratic regimes in the world have been increasing in recent years. As a country pushing for the shift away from authoritarianism, the Republic of Korea finds the political climate in Asia dissatisfactory, as it moves towards these authoritarian governments. Human rights abuses in closed autocratic governments and the implementation of persecution over language or religion are unacceptable to our country. Newly emerged countries are often the most vulnerable to these systems, as immediate release from their former colonial powers have created a power vacuum where one party is supported. Many other countries face terrorism, which sadly, is a common problem in many parts of Asia. A solution to work towards promotion of democracy would be highly favorable to us. At the same time, we hope to see help towards safeguarding democratic countries against corruption and external interference in their elections.
As one of the most democratic countries in Asia, we find that implementation of systems that promote democratic values, such as personal freedoms, fair elections, and protection of these systems to resist the rise of authoritarian governments. The Republic of Korea believes that many problems faced by countries can be solved by transitioning to a democratic framework.
The Republic of Korea has worked hard to achieve the democracy it is today. After the occupation of Korea during World War 2, our country was in turmoil and liberties were limited. In 1979, we faced the assassination of our 3rd elected president, President Park Chung Hee, followed by a military coup later that year. A military dictatorship ran our country for over a year, until the rise of the civilian government, which later created and implemented the fair elections we know today. In recent years, Korea faced the challenge of the imposition of martial law under former President Yoon, which was quickly revoked. Our current president’s cabinet sees this as a threat to the free democratic elections, and it is not what the country stands for. We have also faced significant threats to our democracy from our neighbor to the North, who continually threatens the government of Korea and democracies worldwide. We have been grateful to receive the aid of our close allies in our continued defense in a nation plagued by authoritarian nations.
We would like to underscore the importance of international organizations (NGOs), the United Nations Development Program, the United Nations Office of Counter-terrorism, and regional alliances that support democratic forms of government. The Republic of Korea hopes that this committee will find a solution to help safeguard current and future democracies by creating a framework that will safeguard current democracies and similar forms of government, but also promote democracy throughout the world. We would also enjoy seeing the implementation of new infrastructure run by regional governments overseen by the international community and the United Nations that would help solve this problem. The Republic of Korea looks forward to working with other delegations to find a solution to this ongoing problem.
Sources
https://theconversation.com/south-korea-defeat-of-presidents-attempt-to-impose-martial-law-shows-a-robust-democracy-at-work-245227%0A%0A
https://www.v-dem.net/documents/60/V-dem-dr__2025_lowres.pdf%0A%0A
https://www.idea.int/publications/catalogue/global-state-democracy-2022-forging-social-contracts-time-discontent%0A
