Access to Electronic Thesis Author: Myung Jun Kim Thesis title: The Role of the Environmental Movement in Government Decision Making in Newly Democratised Korea, Focusing on the Anti-Dam Protest Qualification: PhD This electronic thesis is protected by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. No reproduction is permitted without consent of the author. It is also protected by the Creative Commons Licence allowing Attributions-Non-commercial-No derivatives. If this electronic thesis has been edited by the author it will be indicated as such on the title page and in the text. THE ROLE OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT IN GOVERNMENT DECISION MAKING IN NEWLY DEMOCRATISED KOREA, FOCUSING ON THE ANTI-DAM PROTEST Thesis submitted for the degree of PhD by Myung Jun, Kim The University of Sheffield Department of Town and Regional Planning 2012 1 ABSTRACT This research started from a concern about the changing role of the environmental movement in government decision making in newly democratised Korea. Many empirical studies found that environmental movements in other transitional democracies reached their peak during the liberalisation of authoritarian regimes, and considerably declined after democratisation. Unlike these cases, the Korean environmental movement grew greatly after democratisation, but faced its decline later within civil society-friendly administrations (1998-2007). This trajectory raises questions about what actually happened between the government and the environmental movement in Korea. To explain this phenomenon, this research selected the political opportunity structure (POS) approach, which stresses the importance of political environment around social movements. Based on the two dimensions of the POS – “access to the political system” and “configuration of actors”, this research has explored, (i) what forms of access chances were created by the Korean government in decision making; (ii) what change occurred in the relationships between the environmental movement, government, and other social actors; and (iii) how these factors influenced the environmental movement’s ability to influence outcomes. The research is based on case studies of two anti-dam movements, the Dong River dam movement and the Hantan River dam movement, and interviews were carried out with key stakeholders, including environmental activists, public officials, experts, and newspaper reporters. The research findings reveal that the relationship between democratisation and social movements is not a simple process. The development of the environmental movement should be understood within domestic political contexts. Many citizens have still been distrustful of political institutions, and environmental groups staged active protests to take advantage of the increased access chances and a more balanced power relation between the state and civil society. However, the change in the configuration of actors surrounding decision making gradually led to the decline of the movement. This empirical study suggests that firstly, the Korean government adapted their proposals to lower perceived negative impacts and to increase potential financial benefits, and used participatory procedures to arrive at final 2 decisions. Secondly, the persistent protests of the environmental movement resulted in a loss of external support and a growth in public pressure to moderate their demands. In conclusion, the research findings indicate that while the two dimensions of the POS are meaningful to the outcome of social movements, the “configuration of actors” is much more important in the rise and fall of the social movement. The position of related stakeholders surrounding the conflicting parties largely shaped the outcomes. 3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First of all, I would like to sincerely thank my supervisor Professor Gordon Dabinett for his support and guidance throughout the PhD process. His commitment to my PhD has been exceptional and despite his busy schedule he always found both time and enthusiasm for my research. His valid suggestions, insightful comments, and constant encouragement have been a great driver for me in completing this thesis. I also thank my second supervisor, Dr. Ed Ferrari, for his critical comments on the drafts. I am grateful to all the staff within the Department of Town and Regional Planning at the University of Sheffield who helped me to achieve what I set out to do. In particular, I want to thank Professor Heather Campbell and Dr. Aidan for their critical comments in the Rip sessions. I also would like to thank my fellow research students who have supported this thesis in various ways. It was a great pleasure to work with them. I am also grateful to the financial support from the Korean government and many other supports from the MLTM (Ministry of Land, Transport, and Maritime affairs) which I have worked for. I am also highly indebted to all the interviewees who provided me with their valuable time and expertise. Without all these support, it would have been impossible to conduct this research. Finally, my special thanks go to my family for their continual support and encouragement. I would like to thank my wife Ji Hyun, my son Jun Hwi, and my daughter Min Jae for their patience and support over the last three years. Without them I probably would have not completed this research. I am also grateful to my parents and parents in law in Korea for their support and encouragement, and for always hoping that I would finish the PhD one day. 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES .................................................................................................... 9 LIST OF TABLES .................................................................................................... 10 ABBREVIATIONS .................................................................................................... 12 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION .............................................................................. 14 1.1 Research aim and background .............................................................................. 14 1.2 Research questions ................................................................................................ 17 1.3 Structure of the thesis............................................................................................ 24 CHAPTER 2 DEMOCRACY AND SOCIAL MOVEMENT ................................ 26 2.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................... 26 2.2 Brief overview of democracy ................................................................................ 27 2.2.1 Types of democracy .................................................................................... 27 2.2.2 Democratisation .......................................................................................... 33 2.3 Brief overview of social movements ................................................................... 34 2.3.1 Definition of social movments .................................................................... 35 2.3.2 Typical social movement: environmental movement ................................. 37 2.4 Social movement in democratised countries......................................................... 40 2.4.1 Relationship between social movement and democracy ............................ 40 2.4.2 Various explanations for social movements in democratic countries......... 42 2.4.3 Importance of political context ................................................................... 43 2.5 Summary ............................................................................................................... 46 CHAPTER 3 DEMOCRATISATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT IN KOREA ...................................................................................... 48 3.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................... 48 3.2 Democratisation history in Korea ......................................................................... 49 3.2.1 Prior to democratisation (the 1960s - 1987) ............................................... 49 3.2.2 Since democratisation (I) (1988 - 1997) .................................................... 52 3.2.3 Since democratisation (II) (1998 - 2007) ................................................... 55 3.3 Environmental movement in Korea ...................................................................... 59 5 3.3.1 Prior to democratisation (the 1960s - 1987) ............................................... 59 3.3.2 Since democratisation (I) (1988 - 1997) ..................................................... 62 3.3.3 Since democratisation (II) (1998 - 2007) .................................................... 66 3.4 Movements against national construction projects during 1998-2007 ................. 68 3.4.1 Environmental group’s cricitism against national construction projects ... 68 3.4.2 Rise and decline in movements against national construction projects ...... 70 3.5 Characteristics of the Korean environmental movemet ........................................ 73 3.6 Summary ............................................................................................................... 77 CHAPTER 4 POLITICAL OPPORTUNITY STRUCTURE APPROACH ........ 78 4.1 Introduction .......................................................................................................... 78 4.2 Overview of political opportunity structure .........................................................