By William Winberg
For our March Indo-Pacific Policy Dialogue we had the privilege of hosting, together with Temple University Japan, South Korea's conservative People Party Power (PPP) politician Jiwon Ok for a talk on the state of gender equality in South Korea and the implications of the current political turmoil in the country on gender issues following the short lived declaration of martial law by current President Yoon Suk Yeol, of the PPP. The talk also touched open gender issues in general in the country, parallels to Japan and potential lessons to be drawn from the two countries with regards to gender equality problems.
The session was held in-person at Temple University Japan and provided policymakers, scholars, and enthusiasts with an invaluable and timely opportunity to hear the perspective from a young female conversative politician in South Korea. Throughout the sessions, Jiwon Ok engaged with the audience by taking a range of different questions and holding a back-and-forth discussion with audience members. The session was moderated by William Winberg, YCAPS, and Robert Dujarric, Temple University Japan.
