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A donation of 10 million won (US$8,290) in cash left by an anonymous donor at Geoje City Hall in South Gyeongsang Province on Apr. 27. (provided by Geoje City Hall)

A growing movement is emerging as more and more people have declared plans to donate their basic disaster allowances in response to the novel coronavirus outbreak. South Koreans are increasingly announcing plans to donate funds from the local governments that are already paying disaster relief. People are also declaring plans to donate disaster allowances from the central government that are scheduled to be paid in May. This is a hard time for everyone, but it seems like a positive development from the standpoint of building solidarity and mutual benefits to overcome this crisis. This is a time when those who have more to spare are reaching out to aid those in a more difficult position. We look forward to seeing this trend spreading even more widely.

Meritz Financial Group announced on Apr. 29 that around 2,700 employees from all of its affiliates who earned 50 million won (US$41,447) or more in income last year had agreed to voluntarily donate their emergency disaster relief allowances. The emergency disaster support for all South Korea is to be funded from the second supplementary budget, with benefits amounting to 1 million won (US$829) for a four-person household to be paid out before May 15. Meritz also announced that it would provide support to any employees who need it after taking part in the donations, while taking steps to ensure their anonymity. Eighteen central executives from the Society for a Better Tomorrow and the chairs of 17 metropolitan and provincial councils announced their intent to participate as well.

Donations are already being made at the local government level. As of Apr. 27, a total of 291 million won had been raised through 2,737 donations to Gyeonggi Province through its provincial Community Chest. Active donation campaigns are under way among residents in Busan’s Gijang County -- which was the first local government in South Korea to pay a basic disaster allowance -- as well as Suwon in Gyeonggi Province and Jangsu County and the city of Iksan in North Jeolla Province.

On Apr. 27, a middle-aged man visited the public service center at Geoje City Hall in South Gyeongsang Province and left an envelope behind, asking for it to be used for people left struggling as a result of the virus. It contained 10 million won (US$8,290) in cash, along with a letter that began with the words, “I am immensely proud to be a citizen of the Republic of Korea, which has become a model of coronavirus prevention.”

The South Korean government plans to grant tax benefits (a 15% deduction) for donations; hopefully it will also simplify the procedures to allow supportive members of the public to donate easily. The example of the city of Iksan, which will be allowing donations through a single call to its call center (1577-0072) as of Apr. 28, is worth using as a reference. The government plans to use donations from the public to preserve jobs and support unemployed persons, and it goes without saying that particular attention should be paid to allocating it in an efficient and transparent manner.

Without question, donations need to be 100% voluntary in nature. They cannot be allowed to take on a coercive aspect or transform into a “government-driven campaign.” It distorts the aims of donations for all government employees to simply follow along with the donations the president, the ministers and vice ministers are making. The same is true for companies. We must be on guard against people feeling explicit or implicit pressure to donate. We should not forget that the basic aim of donating is to harness the public’s will to overcome a disaster and to establish “trust capital” through stronger social solidarity.

Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]