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The political pendulum is swinging back from a progressive trend that reached its apex in early 2003, when the Roh Moo-hyun administration assumed power, a survey suggests. To mark its 86th anniversary on Sunday, the Chosun Ilbo asked Gallup Korea to look at trends in public opinion by analyzing responses to 15 questions on politics, economics and society. It was the fourth survey since 2002.
Ideological trends were measured on a scale of -50 to 50, where -50 was the most progressive and 50 the most conservative, by averaging out responses to questions in each sector. The pendulum swung from 4.1 in 2002 to its most left-wing in 2003 with 1.8, easing to 1.9 in 2004 and 2.9 points this year.
¡ßPolitics
In terms of politics alone, the swing was more marked, going from 12.7 points in 2003 to 14.7 points in 2006. It was clearer still in response to key individual questions, with 76.6 percent of respondents condemning unconditional support of North Korea, up from 67.4 percent three years ago. Conservative views were also reflected by the 62.1 percent who agreed that the two Koreas should only reunify in a free market economy and the 56.3 percent who want to keep the decades-old National Security Law intact.
¡ßSociety
On social issues, where views remained progressive, they also moved closer to the center, from -2.1 points in 2003 to -0.7 points this year. Conservative views predominated on issues like seniority, where 65.5 percent approved of deference even if the age difference is small and 52.5 percent said freedom of choice should be tempered with care not to embarrass one¡¯s elder family members. Some 53.8 percent disapproved of premarital sex unless it is somewhere along the road to marriage.
¡ßEconomics
Popular opinion on the economy bucked the trend, shifting back further to the left of the spectrum. The overall index stood at -2.5 points in 2002, -5.2 points in 2003, -4.9 points in 2004 and -5.2 points in 2006.
Land ownership turned the biggest proportion of respondents into progressives, with 64.5 percent agreeing that there should be a ceiling on how much land one person can own to prevent ownership from being concentrated in the hands of a few. The majority also agreed that poverty originates from poor policies and social institutions (56.9 percent) and that workers are ill-treated by employers (59.7 percent).
But 55.4 percent took the conservative position that the government should emphasize growth over equal distribution, and while 36.4 percent agreed that public welfare should be improved with higher taxes, 49.6 percent gave a resounding no.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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