Saturday, December 16, 2006

Ave, Jelly!

The flap about the so-called "Busan 9," a reference to the nine-expat theater group whose unauthorized one-act satire of Korean culture got the actors in trouble, has finally been picked up the Biggie Bloggers (see here and here), but never forget that it was Jelly who scooped them all when she emailed me about this incident, a full day earlier. These things matter when the news cycle churns this viciously. After 24 hours, it's old news!

As the Nomad notes, the original post on the matter can be found here.

Over at the Marmot's Hole, one commenter insisted that the play was not a satire of Korean culture, but of certain Korean behaviors. In his argument, he tried to distinguish between culture and behavior by citing such examples as:

fanaticism about Dokdo (behavior, not culture)
pushing a foreigner to eat boshin-t'ang (behavior, not culture)

I'm not sure how you can have culture without specific behaviors. Culture is a complex of attitudes and behaviors; in addition, culture refers to the physical and intangible artifacts that arise from that complex. Any specific, consistently manifested behavior within a culture is not representative of that entire culture, to be sure, but it is part of the culture. Instead of saying that the Busan 9 were satirizing certain Korean behaviors and not the entire culture, the commenter should say that they were satirizing certain aspects of Korean culture. The humorless police probably took this satire as an attack upon the whole of Korean culture, which is unfortunate.

Another Marmot commenter, "Spook" (highlighted by the Marmot himself), notes that, if the Pusan police's interpretation of the law is to be believed, then foreigners on E-2 visas are not allowed to do much more than "work, defecate, and sleep." The flap over this incident is, in my opinion, definitely a free speech matter. As the Nomad points out, the incident betrays a rather selective interpretation and application of the law.

This should not come as a surprise to citizens and expats in any country: if police were truly that concerned about marijuana possession in the States, for example, they could work round the clock arresting pot users. They don't, however, despite what the law requires. Selectivity is in part a function of finite power: the police can't be everywhere at once. It is also partly a result of an understanding of human nature: if the police were relentlessly cracking down on every perceived infraction of minor laws, such enforcement would inevitably become an issue in itself, a matter of oppression. People need room to breathe; flexibility in enforcing the law is necessary in free societies.

But when selective interpretation of the law is consistently in the authorities' favor, as is often the case in Korea when expats are involved, there is reason to be up in arms. Commenter Spook said this:

When these guys went in to the police, the police also discussed the illegality of another local event–a regularly-held Poetry night at a local bar where foreigners and Koreans would get up on stage and read poetry and play music to an audience for free. Guess what? The police said that was illegal. Are you in a band that plays in Itaewon on the weekends, or a mix-master at a Shinchon dance club? Guess again! You’re breaking the law according to Pusan police. Talking to a small group of Korean friends on the street? Who the heck knows, right? Could be illegal. This has a HUGE chilling effect on what we foreigners can do in Korea. Frankly, I’m not really sure anymore [what] we can do.

Expats, you're on notice: much of what you do is possibly illegal! If you're doing drugs here and you get caught and deported, I can't say I have any sympathy for you. But if you're just trying to host a poetry night or a small-scale play... it would seem to me that the local authorities would have better things to do than to act as Orwellian thought police. I'm trying to imagine Dave Chappelle getting dragged off to jail for telling jokes about cops who surreptitiously sprinkle crack on the people they plan to arrest, or Tim Robbins being hauled away in chains for his antiwar rhetoric.

I agree with those commenters who've said that the police action in this case is all about the content of the Busan 9's show, not merely the legality of it. Had this been a Hello Kitty-themed "Let Us All Praise Kimchi and Dog Stew" event, there would not have been a single peep from the authorities, despite the technical illegality.

That gives me an idea about how to resist such stupid laws: fanatically stage show after show, in every possible venue, on every available street corner, in praise of Korean culture. Start slow. Turn it into a year-long movement that builds and builds until thousands are assembling in front of City Hall. Stage unauthorized events all over the country, but especially in Seoul and Busan!

In all seriousness, I would say that simply conforming to an unjust law is the easy way out. True-- as a friend pointed out, being ignorant of the law and then displaying righteous anger after violating it is stupid. But Spook's questions deserve consideration: if we do follow the law, what exactly are we free to do? Not much, it would appear. And that rankles me. If this humble blog, this temple to the gods of farting and shitting, can once again be a voice (however minuscule) for free speech, then it looks as though I might have to drag out some of those old banners again, quite possibly at the risk of my job.


No comments: