The Political Origins of Persistent Elderly Poverty in South Korea

This study explores the origins of pervasive elderly poverty in South Korea, which persists despite the continuous expansion of welfare programs and the consolidation of popular democracy in the country. Predicated upon the historical-institutional details of the development of welfare programs, this article examines and elucidates how the instrumentalization of welfare policy-making since the onset of state-led industrialization and the progress of electoral democracy since the democratic transition have hindered the implementation of effective anti-poverty policies. It argues that the exponential politicization of welfare issues amid the demise of the agenda-setting and implementation capacity of the welfare bureaucracy has resulted in a political preference for low-benefit, quasi-universal solutions without an increase in taxes or contributions, which has crowded out the policy option of imposing sufficiently generous measures targeted at this vulnerable segment of society. As pervasive elderly poverty persists, old-age welfare has been substantially privatized and dualized, compelling seniors to find market-based alternatives or to work in low-paying precarious labour sectors. Consequently, trust in South Korea’s public welfare system has declined, impeding the formation of pro-welfare solidarity despite the overall growth of the universalist welfare system and popular democracy.

韩国持久的老年贫困问题的政治起源

关键词：韩国福利国家，老年贫困， 老年社会福利，福利工具主义，团结一致支持福利，韩国福利政治。

本研究探讨了韩国普遍存在的老年人贫困现象的源起；尽管该国福利项目持续扩张，大众民主也日益巩固，但此现象却持久存在。本论文基于福利项目发展的历史制度主义的细节，检视并阐明了自国家主导的工业化起步以来福利政策制定的工具化以及民主转型以来选举民主的进步是如何阻碍了有效的反贫困政策的实施。它提出， 在福利官僚机构的日程设定和执行能力没落之际，福利问题的政治化迅速加剧，导致政治偏好向低福利、半全民化但不增加税收或者提高缴费的解决方案转型，从而排挤掉了强制推行针对这个弱势的社会群体的足够慷慨的措施的政策选项。随着普遍性的长者贫困现象的持续，老年社会福利已经在很大程度上被私有化和二元化，迫使长者去寻求以市场为基础的方案，或者在不稳定的低薪劳工市场就业。因此，尽管韩国全民性的福利体系和大众民主总体上持续增强，公众对韩国公共福利体系的信任却发生了下滑，阻碍了在支持福利上达成团结一致。

Translated by Li Guo