The Struggle against Neoliberal Governance: Anti-FTA Social Movement in Korea in the Context of Neoliberal Economic Reform.

摘要

The negative impacts of neoliberal globalization have resulted in local mobilizations of civil society around the world resisting the hegemonic forces of the neoliberal imposition. Although civil society has spent tremendous effort in search of alternatives for transforming society impacted by globalism, the power of the hegemonic neoliberal globalization has yet maintained its dominance over civil society. Then, questions arise: Is civil society capable of transforming society? Why was Korean civil society unsuccessful in countering the hegemony established by neoliberal market order in spite of its wide-spread strong resistance to it? The dissertation research seeks to understand the reason why civil society fails to confront the state by examining the case of anti-FTA social movement in Korea.;By building on the theoretical framework in studies of social movement and civil society, the study aims to understand the politics of civil society in the anti-FTA movement. Through archival and observational data, the study documents the characteristics of Korean civil society movement opposed to the Korean-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (KORUS FTA). The movement has significance because the KORUS FTA is the largest set of neoliberal policies promulgated in Korea since the IMF structural reforms were mandated in the 1997 Asian financial crisis. During the movement, despite unprecedented levels of political opportunities and resources, it failed to effectively address its experiences of social exclusion in a critical and constructive manner. The study's findings suggests the importance of critical reflection in counter- hegemonic movements of civil society in sustaining movements and in creating social change, a relationship which is further developed in the study from the perspective of cross-academic dialogues between researchers and practitioners learning from social movements, civil society and conflict resolution.