| Local
government and civil society - 2006.01.22~01.29
Tae-Hune, Park
(Hanyang University Graduate school.
in doctor's course in public administration.
)
On January 22~29, 2006 the Friedrich Naumann
Foundation hosted a seminar on Local Government
and Civil Society at the Theodor-Heuss Akademie
in Gummersbach located in the northwestern
part of Germany.
The seminar was very interesting and instructive.
I am very happy that I had the opportunity
to participate in this meeting and the discussions
and to meet 26 colleagues from all over the
world: Europe, Asia, South-America and Africa.
To me, the seminar was a very valuable experience.
The formal languages were English, Spanish
and Russian. Communication was sometimes an
obstacle to us.
The seminar focused on the evolution, development
and functioning of the local government and
civil society aimed at bringing together participants
to discuss current and future research efforts
to understand all aspects of local administration.
The seminar included the following subjects:
1. Decentralization and preconditions of local
administration
2. Distribution of tasks between the different
tiers
3. Models of financing at the local level
4. Possibilities of citizens' participation
at the local level
5. Forms of organization in civil society
6. Principles of liberal local politics
7. The importance of local government and
civil society for development
I am very much convinced that local democracy
is one of the cornerstones of democracy in
all countries and that its reinforcement is
a factor for stability. Local democracy has
to operate in a new challenging context resulting
not only from structural and functional changes
in local government organization, but also
from the radical political, economic and social
developments that have occurred in a country
and the process of globalization. The participation
of citizens is at the very heart of the idea
of democracy and citizens committed to democratic
values, mindful of their civic duties who
become involved in political activity are
the lifeblood of any democratic system. There
are public expectations that local politics
is changing and this requires more direct,
flexible and ad hoc methods of participation.
It was very happy and it was an exciting
experience to me. The facilities and staff's
service were perfect. I would like to thank
the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for inviting
me to this seminar. I am also very grateful
to the Seoul Office for supporting my trip
to Germany. Without their support I would
not have gained this very valuable experience.
지방 정부와 시민사회 (Local government and
civil society 2005.10.28 - 11.04)
고 유미 (서초구청)
2005년 10월 27일 오후 프랑크푸르트행 비행기로 출발하여 독일이 시차가
8시간 전인 관계로 당일 저녁 늦게 공항에 마중 나온 세미나 관계자와 숙소인
굼머스바흐시(市) 테오도르 호이스 아카데미에 도착하였다. 10월28일부터 11월4일까지
기간은 오전 7시 마을에서 들려오는 교회 종소리와 함께 시작하였다. 아카데미는
인구 55,000명의 큰 빌딩 하나 없는 아담한 소도시에 위치하여 세미나를
하기에 최적의 장소였던 것 같다.
세미나 주제가 "지방 정부와 시민 사회"로서 참가전 현장에서
직접 느끼기 어려운 이념적 주제라서 어렵게 느껴졌지만, 지방자치제를 근간을
이루는 개념을 배우고 느껴보고자 세미나에 참가하게 되었다. 다른 국가들, 특히
지방자치제도의 역사가 오랜 독일의 지방자치제도도 느껴 보고 싶었다.
세미나는 영어, 러시아어, 스페인어로 진행되었으며, 참가자들 대부분은 NGO
등 시민단체와 정당 관계자가 주축이었다. 지방 자치는 자유와 평등, 책임지는
권한 행사를 내용으로 하여 민주주의를 생활 일부분으로 생활화하는 제도라는 것인데
정부 쪽 참가자는 소수로서 행정이 주여서인지 아무래도 이 주제에 대해서는 이론과
현장 경험이 풍부한 시민단체나 컨설턴트 분들이 세미나를 주도적으로 이끌어 나갔다.
현 정부의 부패와 국민 무관심을 걱정하는 한편으로 민주화를 갈망하는 중남미
분들, 네파드를 통하여 가난한 아프리카에서 발전상을 예측하는 아프리카대륙 분들,
티벳 망명 정부에 대해 소개함으로써 티벳의 정치 상황에 대해 새롭게 알게 해준
티벳탄 등 참가자 모두 각자의 위치에서 바람직한 변화를 연구하고, 실천하고자
하는 열정적인 애국자들이었으며, 또한 동지였다. 아쉬웠던 점은 마음을 더욱
열었으면 다양한 억양을 더 잘 이해했을 것이라는 점과 주제에 대해 토의할 내용을
정확하게 철저히 준비했었으면 더 좋았을 것이라는 점이었다. 하지만, 세계 각국에서
모였던 참가자들의 열정, 전문가적인 이론과 행동은 나에게는 세미나 내용을 압도한
듯한 느낌을 주었다.
이번 세미나 내용 중 "잭슨빌시 의회"라고 세미나 내용으로는
처음 시도되는 역할극이라고 하는데, 교육적이면서 재미있었던 프로그램 중 하나였다.
의장단, 보수, 진보, 중도 등 네 팀으로 나뉘어 특정 아이템에 대해 의견을
의회에서 개진하고, 상대편을 설득 논박하고, 최종적으로 표결하여 특정 팀의
의견을 채택하는 방식으로 꾸며진 연극이었다. 의견을 모으고, 의회에서 논박하는
과정을 통해 자기 지역에 대한 관심을 불러일으키고, 참여와 그에 대한 책임을
느끼게 해주는 교육 수단으로서 상당히 효과적일 것이라는 생각이 들어 인상깊었다.
과정 중 독일 베츨라라는 도시를 견학하였는데 지방자치제도가 상당히 정착되어
지방자치단체별로 기업 유치와 고용 창출에 신경을 쓰는 점이 우리와 차이가 있는
것이 아닌가 하는 생각이 든다.
7박 8일 조용하고 아늑했던 소도시에서의 세미나가 너무 빨리 흘러갔고, 아쉬운
점도 많이 남는다. 세계의 사람들과 만나 다양한 사회를 경험하는, 이런 흔치
않은 기회를 갖게 돼 기쁘며, 이런 기회를 배려해 준 나우만재단에 깊이 감사드린다.
'There is where the future of free
democracy lies in the Asian region.' -Five
days of hard training, passionate friends
& vicious flu
Shim, Sang-Dae (Director General, Public Relations Bureau of the Uri Party)
On the morning of September 7, I hopped on a plane o Phnom Penh, Cambodia at Incheon International Airport to attend the CALD Communications Workshop. When I arrived, the city was pitch dark. Since the Immigration Interview took a while, I had to rush outside, grab a cab and arrived at the Juliana Hotel where the Workshop was held. But when I got there, the welcoming dinner had already begun. Dr. Ronald Meinardus who is an interested party of CALD, related officials of the Workshop, participants from Asia and members of the Sam Rainsy Party (Cambodia's Free Democracy Party) were present.
I quickly exchanged greetings and engaged in conversations with the participants while having dinner. Suddenly, I felt both relief and fear rushing in at once. Relief (and a sense of homogeneity) came from the fact that all of the participants were Asians, with the exception of Dr. Meinardus. The fear was that although I prepared well for the conference, I was dubious as to whether I could accurately convey my message with my not-so-fluent English skill.
The reason for applying to participate in this Workshop was the envy I felt in watching the activities pursued by the Naumann Foundation, several trips overseas and training/education abroad, and being in charge of public relations within the Uri Party. I was so thrilled to hear I was chosen as one of the participants. Little did I know that it was reckless thinking on my part when I attended the Workshop the following morning!
The 'Election Campaign to the Media' Workshop began every morning at nine sharp and ended with dinner, giving us barely the time to catch our breath. It was a continuation of hard training, unlike the previous ones in which interested parties from each country gave their presentation and held Q/A sessions. Here, several success and failure stories were presented on election campaigns under the policy circumstances faced by each nation and lots of questions were asked. Through it, we were able to identify the common values shared in the Asian region.
Despite my lacking English skills, I managed well with the help of my Asian counterparts (participants). On the third day after visiting the Toul Sleng Genocide Museum, I felt I was coming down with the flu. I experienced firsthand the barbaric massacres that I only saw in movies and familiarized it with Korea's Gwangju Massacre. The participants all shared the pain of Asia. And I think this led to my coming down with the flu. Of course, having more than I could drink with my new acquainted friends was partly the cause.
During the tight five-day Workshop, I fully realized my purpose in participating through dinner receptions and unofficial social gatherings. I mentioned my objective in participating at the Workshop-'Making Friends in Asia', 'Sharing Experience on the Asian Region' and 'Sharing Values of Already Acquired Free Democracy'-and this was fully realized. I miss my friends whom with teary eyes said goodbyes and we committed to do the utmost in our work. I can still hear the melancholy but beautiful singing of my Indonesian friend 'Aji' who I met tonight.
I am utterly grateful to the Naumann Foundation and CALD for the opportunity to enjoy this valuable experience. We all should make concerted efforts to overcoming the hardships facing the Asian region.
Gummersbach Seminar Report 2004.04.16.~2004.4.23.
Kim, Se-Jin (Assistant Official of
Gangnam District of Seoul in Korea)
This seminar gave me a meaningful
opportunity to reflect upon the actual
circumstances of the field of administration
that would have been difficult to capture
in reality. The theme for this seminar,
entitled“”New Public Management,"
was a theoretical basis for the Gangnam-gu
district’s administration to achieve
a transparent administration through
measures such as outsourcing, so I was
personally very interested and motivated
to participate in the seminar.
Unfortunately, the very tight schedule
of the seminar gave little chance for
the participants to really feel the
German atmosphere but I can still vividly
feel the kind of friendship that I was
able to share with all the participants
from different countries.
Gummersbach, a one-hour ride from Koln,
is a quiet and small city with a population
of 50,000. There were participants from
European countries such as Croatia,
Serbia, Poland; African countries such
as Zimbabwe, Ghana; and Latin American
countries such as Argentina, Mexico
and Uruguay. Twenty-five participants
from 22 countries altogether, with different
experiences and backgrounds, talked
about the actual circumstances in their
countries and shared their opinion on
how to apply in practice the idea of
"new public management" and
how to accomplish an advanced administration.
There were countries that already adapted
this kind of policies as administrative
goals as well as countries whose administration
was highly bureaucratic. They had a
heated debate together and finally everybody
agreed that now is the time to pursue
a customer-centered, people-centered
administration.
A session called Regional Presentation
gave all participants an opportunity
to introduce their cultures to each
other. This activity helped make everyone
forget that they are tired during the
middle portion of the tight seminar
schedule. One action was far more effective
than a thousand words: Latin America's
passionate excitement, Africa's folk
ways and the Asian region's calmness.
In many regions, ideological and religious
differences cause wars and disputes,
but I was moved at the thought that
if we can respect each other’s cultures
we can all become friends and neighbors.
The memory of a participant from Zimbabwe
who disguised himself as Tarzan to express
the passionate aspect of Africa never
fails to make me smile.
The proverb “The world is as you know
it" brought to mind many things.
These days, the Gangnam-gu district
has been implementing administrative
practices such as e-government and administrative
reforms. The district takes pride in
its achievements that are comparable
to those of other countries. However,
I must admit I had some doubts as to
whether the quality of administration
could really be compared with what is
practiced in the rest of the world.
Korea was a good example in that all
knew Korea, but many of the participants
did not know what is it exactly good
at.
The week in Gummersbach was a good opportunity
to expand my knowledge.
I realized that we are all basically
the same as human beings. All the participants
from 22 countries, although coming from
ethnically and culturally diverse background,
finally agreed that the core of administration
is ensuring and supporting a comfortable
life for its people.
I thank the Naumann Foundation for giving
me this opportunity to expand my world
view.
KIM, SANG-HO 
Liberal Youth Meeting Political Youth
Organization: Significance, Influence and
Improvement in performance, 2003
By the invitation of the Naumann Foundation, I attended the 8th Liberal Youth Meeting as a Korean representative. The meeting was held in the Villa Lessing Training Institute in Saarbrucken, Germany.
Three major activities of Nauman Foundation are Political education, Political dialogue and Political consulting. Among these, I participated in a political dialogue program, which was successfully performed within a short period.
Twenty-one people who came from 20 different countries were gathered to debate on the main subject, "Youth Organization : significance, influence and improvement in performance."
The participants had small group discussions with various political issues from 9 a.m. - 7 p.m. each day for a week. The ideas and suggestions proposed during the six days discussion were very unique and practical.
Especially, the meeting itself was an eye opener to me. The different eating habits and religious styles of my friends, was an experience in itself, and opened my eyes to the diverse ways people of various nationalities perceive problems and handle anxiety.
Villa Lessing Training Institute! Through this opportunity, I was able to meet and make good friends from all over the world. It was my privilege to meet the staffs of Nauman Foundation who are professionals in political education. I won't forget the people of the Villa Lessing Training Institute who were so kind and helpful.
Globalisation vs Regionalism (2002. 12. 8 ~ 12.20)
Lee, Yun-chung (Center for Local Autonomy, Hanyang University )
First day in Gummersbach, I met all participants from 20 different countries in Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Central and South America and Eastern Europe, the former communist countries. The next morning started the seminar, 'Globalization vs Regionalism'. I had considered the concept of Globalization as familiar. As the seminar was proceeded, However, I was aware that I had concentrated on just one side of it, economic part. We talked about the several part of it; political part, cultural part, social part, which have been affecting all of countries on the earth. We pondered on its negative effects as well as positive effects, also its measures to minimize the former and maximize the latter. Finally, we reached to the conclusion that all of countries should be connected with each other to solve it and be using the international institutes; IMF, IBRD, WTO etc.
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