[12월 09일] Banknote Figure Debate

[kyle]

Two denominations will be added to the current currency in Korea. They are 50,000 won ($55) and 100,000 won ($110). The highest denomination in Korea’s currency will be 100,000 won in 2009.

There has been a lot of controversy over the models for its new denomination banknotes. Despite the strong criticism on selecting the models, the Bank of Korea (BOK) announced recently that Kim Koo and Shin Saimdang are selected as the models. Kim will be on the 100,000 won bill while Shin will be on the 50,000 won bill.

Kim was the late president of the interim government in Shanghai during the Japanese colonial rule (1910-1945). He was supported by a wide range of the popular voice leading the BOK’s poll for the models of the new denomination. Not many people opposed him as one of the models compared to other candidates.

Shin was an exemplary mother and wife in the Joseon Kingdom. The talented female artist was good at painting, poetry and calligraphy. She left many artworks. However, Shin’s selection as model of 50,000 won bill is becoming the subject of debate over the selection.

Shin had many reasons for disqualification for its debut as a banknote figure. She is the mother of the renowned Confucianist scholar Yulgok Yi I. He is portrayed on the 5,000 won bill. The background picture of the bill is Shin’s drawing too. Her name, “Saimdang” was named so because she admired the mother of an ancient Chinese king.

The controversial point is that Shin is allegedly, not an appropriate model for modern women. Some progressive women’s rights groups strongly opposed Shin because of this. “The BOK should have been more careful in selecting figures for the banknote models. Shin is not a good choice,” said an official from the Korean National Council of Women. “Shin Saimdang can be an ideal role model for women under the Confucian patriarchal system, not for modern dynamic women.”