Critic Says South Korean President Park Geun Hye’s Youth Hope Fund Is An Example Of A Policy Initiative ‘Just To Show Off’

by Diana Tomale / Oct 20, 2015 11:10 PM EDT

Critic says South Korean president Park Geun Hye's crowd funding project Youth Hope Fund "is a typical example of a policy initiative just to show off." (Photo by Chung Sung Jun / Getty Images News)

After South Korean president Park Geun Hye launched Youth Hope Fund last month, the crowd funding project hasnow raised 2.1 billion won donated by 51,000 benefactors, as noted by ft.com on Sunday.

Park became the first donor of the project that aims to create more job opportunities for the youth. The South Korean president contributed 20 million won and promised to spare 20 percent of her monthly salary for the crowd funding project.

"Park proposed the idea during a Cabinet meeting to help the government successfully complete labor market reform," says senior presidential secretary for economic affairs Ahn Jong Beom, as reported by Korea Times on September 15.

"She said she will be the first donor. We hope people from all walks of life, including prominent social leaders and businesspeople, will voluntarily donate money and join our efforts to provide jobs for young people."

Ahn adds, "President Park and the Cabinet ministers agreed to share the burden for the labor market reforms pushed forward through the grand compromise of the unions, employers and the government," as noted by Korea Joongang Daily on September 16.

Park says that she wants to "play as a starter role to raise resources to hire the young."

"I hope many people, including Cabinet ministers, will participate to build a society where we can share the burden," she adds.

However, critics consider this project more of a "PR stunt" because of the absence of spending arrangements.

"It is a typical example of a policy initiative just to show off," says Ahn Jin Gul of People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy. "It will soon end up forcing people to make donations."

Some labor unions and activists even say that reportedly, some companies compete to raise donations for the project from their employees, while there are allegations that some banks allegedly ask all of their employees, including security guards, to contribute for the fund raising.