South Korea
	President Roh Sings the Blues
	By John Larkin Seoul

Posted Monday, June 2, 2003; 21:00 HKT
In politics, 100 days can feel like a lifetime. Just ask South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun, who has lately seen his popularity plunge with dizzying speed. Only three months into his presidency, Roh is battling a wave of labor disputes, North Korean nuclear belligerence, a slowing economy and a burgeoning corruption scandal. It's all taking a toll on the 56-year-old former human-rights lawyer, who was elected on a promise of cleaning up South Korea's notoriously graft-ridden and vicious political scene. Speaking to civic leaders in late May, a disconsolate Roh confessed, "I feel incompetent as President."

He's feeling the heat in part because of his administration's handling of recent labor disputes involving truckers at ports around the country and workers at Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction. Both flare-ups were settled, but only after the government caved in to union demands. The government says its concessions will build trust, but corporate critics worry that Roh's pro-labor sympathies will spark more strikes, hobbling an economy already beset by soaring credit-card debt and lackluster growth. "The lesson for unions is whatever they want they can get," says Ken Lee, executive vice president of Good Morning Shinhan Securities in Seoul. "This could be a serious problem. We understand Roh has to learn, but right now business is paying the cost of his tuition."

Roh is also paying a price for his toughened stance toward North Korea. Since returning from his May 14 summit with U.S. President George W. Bush, Roh has angered his support base of younger, progressive voters by falling into line with Bush's policy of pressuring Pyongyang into surrendering its nuclear bomb programs. On the campaign trail, Roh claimed his priority was to avoid provoking Pyongyang into unleashing war, and he vowed never to "kowtow" to the U.S. But Kim Jong Il's provocations—most recently declaring that he has nuclear bombs and is willing to test and export them—have made that policy of appeasement seem like a case of dangerous denial. Roh has reluctantly responded by suggesting that food aid be tied to the North's good behavior. "I'm very disappointed with Roh," says Lee Seung Hun, an activist who organized anti-U.S. rallies that helped Roh win the presidency. "He's nothing but a coward."

Roh's newfound pragmatism should have won him the affection of conservatives. But many middle-aged Koreans still regard him as untested and naive. Those prejudices have been reinforced by allegations from his political opponents that Roh hid real estate assets under his brother's name. On May 28, Roh rejected the allegations. But as Bill Clinton discovered, a lingering real estate scandal can be a nightmare, whether or not the allegations are true.

Can Roh get back on track? Maybe. One way to start would be to quit carping about his "sense of crisis"—the kind of talk that gives Seoul's political sharks an intoxicating scent of blood in the water. For now, there's still hope. Roh, who rose from an impoverished family to become President, has already shown his gift for turning adversity into triumph. "I think he'll find his way out," says Ken Lee of Good Morning Shinhan Securities. "Roh's no fool."

—With reporting by Mingi Hyun

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