Last fall, the citizens of Hong Kong staged the Umbrella Revolution in opposition to Beijing’s interference in the 2017 election that will decide the next leader of the autonomous territory. Along with the fact that a massive protest took place in the center of a large city, one of the most interesting aspects of the revolution was that one of its leaders, Joshua Wong, was an 18-year-old student. This raised a few questions about the participation of students in actual politics.

To many people, the political arena is a place only for adults, especially those from the right family with the proper upbringing and the background to raise enough money to run for whatever office. Many assume that young people generally agree with this.

Currently, Korea’s young people face barriers from the political world under the assumption that they don’t have the required political knowledge and sense. For instance, party laws prevent teenagers from becoming a member of any party, and from taking part in any national elections or campaigns.

The above assumptions are considered self-evident. However, according to the National Statistical Office, 83.3 percent of teenagers think that they should have a chance to participate in politics, and a significant number of teenagers took part in the demonstration commemorating the Sewol ferry accident. I believe these two examples display the imprecision of the given presumptions. Adolescents do want to participate in politics and they do possess enough sense to oppose illogical and unjust policies. Therefore, there must be access for young people to express their political opinions.

At present, several obstructions block such access. First is the law. As mentioned, party laws prohibit youths from participating in actual politics. These laws must be amended. Second is the social bias that adolescents are supposed to stay in their place and not interfere with “adult” affairs ― in this case, politics. Granted, some issues don’t require the opinions of young people but some, like problems concerning education, do require their perspectives.

So how can young people get involved? Today, many students use social media or Internet communities to obtain information and to share their thoughts. Unfortunately, these platforms attract users to their preferred content and isolate them from opposing views. Consequently, birds of the same political feather flock together. This discourages open-mindedness and consideration for other people’s views and, at worst, creates more aggressive thoughts and commentary.

Hence, I believe that the best way for students to obtain information is through traditional media: periodicals, radio and television news. Such media generally pursue neutrality, which could help the youth develop a fair mindset. Detractors may say some media are, like the Internet, biased. However, the difference is that the political biases of outlets are well known. For example, the JoongAng, Donga and Chosun dailies are conservative papers while the Hankyoreh and Kyunghyang are liberal. A significant difference exists between absorbing information while taking into account the leanings of a media outlet and thinking that the “fact” you see is the ultimate and only truth.

Politics is about communicating with and engaging different members of society, and teenagers are a crucial part of it. Their participation in politics could come about by recognizing them as legitimate members of society and modifying laws to give them access to the political world. Meanwhile, teenagers should prepare to become proper participants by studying politics and social affairs via trustworthy sources.

Song Na-hyun

Freshman at Hankuk Academy of Foreign Studies