▲Jwa Sung-hee, Visiting Professor of Economics KDI School of Public Policy and Management

For the past 5,000 years our nation has lived on the Korean peninsula, writing a history of struggles against aggression from powerful neighbors. As China is rising again, we are now striving again for a strategy of survival as if walking a tightrope. However, history will likely repeat itself as long as we are confined to this peninsula. Moreover, the situation will probably worsen given that, amid populist politics disparaging economic excellence in favor of economic equality, the nation is losing its economic vitality that once grabbed the world`s attention.

Above all, it seems to be the inevitable course of history that the Pax Americana is nearing its end. Throughout human history, no civilization or economy has maintained its No. 1 position forever. Great Britain had spearheaded the Industrial Revolution by replicating the success know-how of Spain and the Netherlands. Likewise, the United States became the undisputed sole superpower in the 20th century by replicating the success of the Great Britain. As such, the road to superpower status opened with free riding on the success of predecessors.

Now, the U.S. economy finds its superpower position threatened by free replication by any other country. China was a third-class country for 150 years after its defeat in the Opium Wars. But it has built a strong foothold in the global market by duplicating Korea`s success over the past 30 years. Whether China will overtake the United States depends on how hard it will continue to pursue economic excellence, diligently learning from America`s success but raising its guard against the failing populism of social democracy.

What about the future of Korea in the next 5,000 years? It would be difficult to envision a bright future which ensures self-esteem, if the nation fails to go beyond its territorial boundaries of the Korean peninsula and grows into one of the world`s strongest economies. A state cannot get out of its territory, but its people can go beyond their border. The key is to push for national restructuring toward a vision of “global Korean community.”

Think about the remarkable success stories written by Korean immigrants in the past century. There is no reason why the Koreans, who are as brilliant as the Jews and capable of adapting to a new environment wherever they are, will not be able to construct a diaspora for global management. If more and more Korean immigrants occupy important positions in politics, economics, finance and science in the world`s leading countries, they can influence global trends. Korea would then have an advantage in the global competition for political and economic hegemony.

As a journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step, I want to suggest the following steps to start a “global Korean community” project.

First, I suggest the government create a department in charge of the Korean diaspora network to draw up a long-term project. The method of promoting the project should be highly strategic in consideration of international attention. Second, I suggest the government encourage overseas emigration and grant double citizenship to all ethnic Koreans abroad. Korean immigrants abroad should no longer be discriminated against in order to protect the vested interests of people at home.

Third, domestic educational institutions should open their doors wide and offer programs for second- and third-generation overseas Koreans to become familiar with Korean culture. The Jeju Global Education City may be expanded to serve as a contact point for overseas ethnic Koreans. Fourth, the paradigm of economic management should be changed to economic excellence, not economic equality, and join the ranks of the world`s major economies.

Looking forward to a bright future for our nation over the next 5,000 years, let us try to build a worldwide community of Koreans beyond the geographical boundary of the peninsula. /Jwa Sung-hee, Visiting Professor of Economics KDI School of Public Policy and Management

(This coloum was written on  KOREA FOCUS, July 2014)