I am You and You are Me

Crisis situations make the poor, poorer, and the rich, richer. During the 1997 IMF crisis, oil prices tripled and real estate prices fell by half. People lost their jobs and many had problems with daily expenses. The results are still with us after 20 years. Instead of narrowing the gap between the rich and the poor, it grew larger. This is the background that explains the social polarization of society. A scholar in the humanities writes in the Catholic Peace Weekly of what post-corona will look like.

Corona 19 is a crisis that threatens life itself and reduces social life. It is imperative to survive without infection right now, but the shrinking economy and housekeeping will continue to be a burden. At the end of the complications, emergency disaster funds will be distributed with expectations the rich will donate voluntarily. Of course, some rich people will be generous, a good example of social solidarity and Noblesse Oblige.

The state's fiscal soundness mentioned by public officials is not difficult to understand. However, in this situation, if the State does not accept the debt it will be the citizens who will be shouldering the debt and where the weak become the food for the rich. Those who don't understand this struggle for survival are not employed and there is no danger of their earning to drop sharply.

At the very least, we should make sure that this crisis does not accelerate polarization again. Indeed, poor people around the world are easily infected and die from corona, while the rich are relatively safe. In such a situation, wealth is on one side. As this vicious cycle repeats, humanity takes a big blow. Even if you survive the epidemic, human life is impossible, it is already a life of hell.
 
Emergency funds must be quickly distributed to all. Those who can live without the money can refuse it and give it to the poorer in society. I am you and you are me. Without you, neither am I. There is no increase in capital without workers. Social relationships are not unilateral, it is not human to deliberately victimize another group in society.

The Republic of Korea has demonstrated the world's best prevention system in response to Corona 19. It is not something that just happened. This was possible because of reflection and preparation based on the experiences of the SARS and MERS events. If we didn't learn from those experiences, our anti-virus system would have been impossible.

The result of our preemptive response, the diagnostic kits, and prevention methods, surprised the whole world. Also, our self-esteem has increased and we see the world differently. We have witnessed how ignorant the reckless attitude of evaluating a country by military or economic power alone.

Beyond our success in precautions and prevention, we must be able to express our humanity and social solidarity. We remember only too well the 1997 crisis; it has been with us for over 20 years. Don't repeat that in Corona 19 this time. It may be more difficult economically, but rather it should lead to more solidarity and cooperation. The crisis becomes an opportunity. It is a time when the sense of urgency needs to enter solidarity: when you fail I also fail.