South Korea’s conservative protesters, like Britain’s Brexiteers, reject rule by doctrinaire leftists
- The resounding success of the Tories in Britain has its echoes in Seoul, where hundreds of thousands rebel against Moon
- The two situations have differences, but in both the middle and working classes have grown weary of out-of-touch leftists
Conservatives won 365 of the 650 seats in the Commons, giving them an 80-seat edge over Labour. This is their biggest margin since the era of Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s, enough to be sure Johnson can hold his post for another few years.
The humiliation of leftists in the British elections offers a lesson others are learning worldwide. Look at the US, where the Republican Donald Trump maintains popularity among zealous advocates in the face of impeachment by the Democratic-dominated House of Representatives, condemnation by most leading newspapers and devastating criticism by TV panellists and late-night talk show hosts.
The conservative backlash against liberals and leftists who think they are magically endowed to decree what’s right and wrong extends to South Korea.
For months we have seen the resurgence of grass-roots conservatism rising up against the agenda of President Moon Jae-in and his circle of advisers, many of whom were, like him, once activists. Several hundred-thousand foes of Moon’s left-leaning government gather Saturday afternoons and evenings listening to impassioned speeches calling for his ouster.
