President Moon likely to pursue hands-off policy on culture

SEOUL, May 11 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's newly elected President Moon Jae-in is expected to work to guarantee independence in the cultural sector and nurture an environment where the public can more easily enjoy cultural events. Based on his cultural policies made public during the presidential campaign, the new government will try to, first of all, minimize unnecessary political intervention in the cultural industry, which was hurt by the former government's blacklisting of artists critical of it and denying them state support. Unfair political interference by the Park Geun-hye government in the cultural sector was one of the key issues that sparked public anger and protest that eventually led to her official removal in March. During the campaign trail, Moon introduced "Support but Not Intervene" as the backbone of his cultural policy. He also promised to seek measures to ensure a fair and transparent management of state-run cultural institutions, such as Arts Council Korea, the Korean Film Council and the Publication Industry Promotion Agency of Korea. A larger involvement of artists and entertainers will be assured in the appointment process of high-level officials in those agencies. An ombudsman system will be put in place to listen to and accommodate critical voices against the government's cultural policies. Moon has also laid out his vision for Korea where every citizen feels more comfortable with enjoying cultural events like exhibitions and concerts. According to his campaign promises, various measures are being toyed with, including a tax break on spending for such events, expansive culture and art education from an early age, and encouraging community-based cultural gatherings. To enhance welfare for young artists, Moon plans to utilize underused public spaces for art studios, and create more jobs by hiring artists for public art and urban revitalization projects. Also being discussed is the provision of unemployment benefits for low-income artists in the field of performance and film-making, as well as the introduction of a standardized salary table to guarantee them fair treatment. jaeyeon.woo@yna.co.kr (END)