In 2015, Kim Rando, a Korean professor who is known as the first person in modern Korea to open his eyes to the world, participated in a program called "Seeing Ten Thousand Miles", in which Professor Kim said such a sentence about the development of South Korea and China.
"The country in the world that looks down on the United States is North Korea, and the country that looks down on China is South Korea, and when talking about China, most South Koreans have a blind sense of superiority, but in fact, in the eyes of Chinese youth, they have never cared about South Korea. ”
Throughout modern history, South Korea and China share many similarities, but they have chosen very different paths when it comes to development decisions.
Korea and China after World War II
The year 1945 was a crucial turning point for both South Korea and China.
In that year, after Japan's surrender, the United States and the Soviet Union divided the Korean Peninsula into two parts along the 38th parallel, with the Soviet Union temporarily taking over the north of the 38th parallel, and the United States establishing a military administration office south of the 38th parallel.
In the fall of 1947, after two years of confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union on the Korean Peninsula, the United Nations passed a resolution calling for free elections and the formation of a government on the Korean Peninsula, after which the United States and the Soviet Union withdrew from the Korean Peninsula.
In August 1948, with the support of the United States, elections were held in the South Korean Peninsula region, and the Republic of Korea was established on the basis of these elections. In September of the same year, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea was established in the North Korean region with the support of the Soviet Union.
Between 1948 and 1960, South Korea's first president, Syngman Rhee, followed Japan's lead and set off a wave of government-sponsored chaebols, with companies such as Samsung and LG being established during this period.
From 1961 to 1979, South Korea's legendary president, Park Chung-hee, took office. Park Chung-hee formulated a series of economic development plans based on South Korea's national conditions, laying a solid foundation for the "Han River Miracle".
On this basis, South Korea's economy has ushered in a qualitative leap, taking advantage of the advantages of cheap local labor and attracting a large amount of foreign capital and technology. In just over two decades, South Korea has shaken off the title of "one of the poorest and most backward countries in the world".
In 1963, South Korea's per capita GDP was about $100, and by 2005, it was $16,000, a 160-fold increase.
In 1949, after the founding of the People's Republic of China, China began to explore an unprecedented path of economic development that was in line with China's national conditions, and it took China more than 30 years to explore the correct path.
In 1963, China's per capita GDP was about $74, a difference of about $26 compared to South Korea, and in 1967, South Korea's per capita GDP was about $145, while China's per capita GDP was about $97. Both sides are growing, but the gap is gradually widening.
In 1977, South Korea's per capita GDP was about $1,000, while China's per capita GDP was only $185, a difference of more than $800.
In 1978, China began to enter the stage of reform and opening up, the basic framework of socialism with Chinese characteristics was completed, and China's economy steadily improved at a relatively moderate pace, while South Korea continued to grow by leaps and bounds.
In 1994, South Korea's per capita GDP exceeded 10,000 for the first time, reaching an astonishing $10,424, while China's per capita GDP was still hovering around $500 and had not yet entered the 1,000-yuan stage.
In 2015, the per capita GDP of Chinese was about 8,000 US dollars, and the per capita GDP of South Korea was about 27,000 US dollars, which is still higher and much higher than that of China.
In terms of GDP alone, South Korea is indeed stronger than China, and South Korea can indeed look down on China, but does GDP really explain everything? Will countries with high GDP necessarily have better economic development than countries with low GDP?
This is not the case, and Professor Jin Landu used his own personal experience to reject this view.
China's present and future
Professor Jin Landu said that he travels to China almost every year, and every time he comes to China, he has a different experience.
He has interviewed many South Koreans living in China, and they have given Professor Kim this answer in terms of their knowledge of China.
"After half a year or even a year in China, I feel like I am starting to understand China, but as time goes by, after 3, 5 or even 10 years, I feel more and more that I don't know China, and the country is changing too fast. ”
At the start of the day, the ride-hailing app used by his companion on his smartphone caught Professor Kim's attention.
"This is a taxi-hailing software, you can easily call an online taxi by entering the destination, and you can pay the fare online after the trip. Professor Kim's companion introduced.
The ten-minute trip was over quickly, and they first came to a shopping mall.
In the electronics area, Professor Jin found that there are many Chinese brands of electronic products, such as Huawei and Xiaomi. Of course, Korean brands such as Samsung and LG also have retail stores in this mall, but their footfall is lower than that of Chinese brands.
With the strong recommendation of his peers, Professor Jin also experienced the speed of China's high-speed rail. China's high-speed railway, which can reach a maximum speed of 400 km/h, is 1.5 times faster than South Korea's high-speed rail. The travel time between major cities in China has been reduced to 1 day. And China's technology for manufacturing high-speed rail is in a leading position in the world.
"Maybe China is developing much faster than we thought, and maybe it's already starting to overtake us. ”
In addition to the rapid development of science and technology, another thing that shocked Professor Jin was the vision of young people in China for the future. No matter what the conditions, they uphold the goal of combining hope and dream, and work hard for it.
Staying in Beijing is a difficult start for college graduates from modest backgrounds, with high rents forcing them to live in the suburbs, sharing apartments with four, five, or even six people.
Professor Jin conducted a close interview with these young people, and when talking about China's future development, all young people were full of confidence that China will get better and better.
"If you compare the speed of China's development today, China will be better in the future. If you compare 10 years ago with now, many things are unimaginable. China is gradually showing the world its rise, and we are experiencing China's rise firsthand. ”
Professor Jin also taught Professor Jin a lesson in the exploration of innovation, and these young people have redefined entrepreneurship: entrepreneurship is not something that you have to do because you can't find a job, but a challenge to fight for your dreams. This is exactly what young Koreans lack.
"Compared with these young people in China, Korean young people are like flowers in a greenhouse, they lack the confidence and determination to start a business, and they are unwilling to leave their comfort zone. Professor Kim said.
Apparently, most Koreans are still immersed in the splendor of the "Miracle of the Han River", retaining a blind sense of superiority.
South Korea unilaterally regarded China as an adversary, but it never thought that South Korea's name would never appear in the list of China's opponents.
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