5.16 군사정부의 사회개혁정책: 농어촌고리채정리사업과 재건국민운동을 중심으로

Abstract

This study examines the social reforms policies of the military administration by focusing on the anti-usury project for rural areas and the nation rebuilding movement. To gain the support of the farmers the 5.16 military administration just after the military coup offered a physiocrat policy, one of it was the enforcement anti-usury project for farming/fishing in the rural areas. The purpose of this undertaking was to solve the problems of liabilities of farmers/fishermen by reducing the dependence of farmers on the unregulated financial institutions and thereby to attract farmers into formal financial institutions to bring stability and growth in rural economy. However, the implemented policy could not proceed in the way it was planned due to the prevailing social situations in rural society which was bounded by blood ties,regional kinship, and ‘empathy and moral sense’ and the failure of supplying the much needed funds in rural areas. Meanwhile, to promote the legitimacy of the ‘military takeover’ and in order to popularize the social norms established by the military junta for them the military administration carried out the national rebuilding movement immediately after the military coup. In the initial period, under the initiative of military leaders a very centralized military administration was established in a very short time and every effort was made to spread anti-communist ideology. However, as time went by, the national rebuilding movement expanded its arms in education sector, regional development projects, guiding principle of day to day life, etc. and its operation spread to non-governmental organizations as well. In this way the national rebuilding movement even after downsizing of the support from the military government functioned for the private organizations, but the role of the movement rapidly weakened. Eventually, the policies on anti-usury project for rural areas and nation rebuilding movement followed unilaterally from the top during military regime exposed its limitations. However, the experience of establishment of the national organization and using it to mobilize and regulate the citizens had a huge impact on the Park Chung Hee regime to run state affairs after the transfer of power to civil government.