Book Review: Shrimp To Whale

In 2021, a South Korean company, Samsung, announced that it was building a factory in Texas. Fifty years ago, American companies were offering to build factories in South Korea.

Book Review: Shrimp To Whale by Ramen Pacheco Pardo

For centuries, Korea was a single country. United by geography, culture, and religion, the people of Korea were a single nation. In 1945, Korea gained independence from Japan. That was the last time it was a united country. Korea would become South Korea and North Korea. The only difference between these two Koreas was that one was a country supported by the Capitalist United States, and the communist USSR supported the other. The two Koreas would go to war because each wanted to conquer the other and create a united country. USSR supported North Korea, and the United States backed South Korea. There would be no victor. From my perspective, it remains a foolish war. No one gained anything; not an inch of the border was added to any country. The division lines still stopped at exactly where it was before the war. The war had only disastrous consequences; it forever sealed the enmity between the two countries. Brothers and sisters could no longer see each other.

And so, South Korea began its journey as an independent country. This is what this book is all about. It follows the story of Korea's founding, from myth up to 2022. It is a wonderful achievement that the history of centuries can be summarized in less than 200 pages.

South Korea is a nation many third-world countries can learn from. At its founding, it had a GDP per capita of 67 dollars in 1953. Today, its GDP per capita of $34,700! At independence, it was poorer than Sub-Saharan Africa. Today, no country in Sub-Saharan Africa earns a quarter of what the average South Korean earns. It was an agrarian society in which more than 75% of the population was employed in Agriculture.

Despite its challenges, South Korea will rise to become one of the most prosperous countries in the world. In 2021, a South Korean company, Samsung, announced that it was building a factory in Texas. Fifty years ago, American companies were offering to build factories in South Korea to take advantage of the cheap labour available. In 2021, South Korea was building factories in America. It tells you how far this country has come. It has gone from being a Shrimp to becoming a whale. All over the world, there are signature South Korean products and companies from Samsung to LG, Hyundai, to Kia Motors, amongst many other billion-dollar worth companies. In Entertainment, South Korean movies are watched from India to Nigeria to America. South Korean films have won Oscars and other global awards. South Korea has hosted the World Cup, Olympics, and OECD meetings, and it regularly ranked among the top as one of the most innovative countries in the world. In nearly every good statistic, South Korea ranks at the top.

Its development journey was not without challenges. It had dictators who constantly scuttled the will of the people. In one painful scenario, the military cordoned off an entire city during a protest. Cut off communication for days and killed protesters. It was a mini-war between civilians and soldiers. One of its presidents was assassinated by his Chief Security. It has impeached a president. A few were forced to resign. And it had its battles with its sister-neighbor country, North Korea. North Korea has bombed South Korea several times. Highjacked a plane and killed everyone in it. They've attempted assassination against its president while in Thailand and have constantly threatened to annihilate it. Its chief security partner, the US, has been a sort of protector and exploiter depending on who was the president. But South Korean leaders and its people have regularly fought against America's imperialism. The relationship between the two has been like the teeth and tongue. Both have survived.

There were three major reasons South Korea was able to develop.

1. A commitment by its leaders to develop. Every South Korean leader, dictator or democratically elected, understood that economic development was key. To gain legitimacy, every leader had to deliver on economic growth. This commitment to development meant that nothing was allowed to interrupt the upward trajectory of the country.

2. The south Korean people. The South Korean people insisted on better lives for themselves. This book highlights many protests from independence to 2022 when South Koreans went on protest. Even in the most authoritarian administrations, South Koreans were protesting. In 2021, they were protesting again. This time around, they wanted their president impeached. They got their way, as they always did. When people insist on a thing, leaders bow to the pressure.

This is an easy-to-read book that gives you a good history of Korea. I enjoyed it. It gives you enough details to understand, respect, and admire South Korea.