The 100,000 won Bill

The long discussed Korean 100,000 won (around $90-95 USD) is again up for discussion as a new image has been released featuring Kim Gu on one side and Dok-do on the other.

Now Kim Gu makes sense. He was a major figure in Korea;s independence movement during the colonial period. He was also the man that should have been President of a united Korea after WWII. He worked hard with Kim Il Sung on unification and against Lee Syng Manh who was the right wing military dictator of the south. His death has led to wild conspiracy theories including CIA plots and northern assassins though in reality he was probably killed by political rivals. He is also a good image as he is revered in both the north and the south.

It's also interesting that he is the first person from the 20th century to be on a Korean bill. the rest have been honored scholars or Kings from Joseon, the so-called Korean golden age. It's interesting to me that they have chosen a modern figure for this bill.


The back of the bill almost had me packing my bags. Dok-do. Dok-do are a collection of rocks east of Korea that are disputed between South Korea and Japan. Now Korea has the much stronger claim, but neither side has taken it to an international court yet. The fact is that both sides want the fishing rights that go with ownership of these islands. However in Korea the issue has taken on a life of its own. It's labelled a new struggle against Japanese colonialism, it's used shamelessly in advertising and the Sea of Japan is now called the East Sea here, as though the sea having Japan's name gives everything in it to Japan (you know how the Gulf of Mexico is owned by Mexico and all...........). While I think if it goes to court Korea will win the Dok-do case it seems very petty to put it on your bill, especially as Kim Gu could easily be seen as a shot at Japan too (though not any more than George Washington on the US dollar bill is a shot at Britain). Canada is currently disputing several islands with Denmark (near Greenland). I would be embarrassed to see them on Canadian currency. Are we six? How about we sit down with Denmark and talk like adults to work out our differences? If anything, that petty act would harden people against Canada as I think it will harden people against Korea, which is a shame because if you take away Korea's excessive nationalism and look at it from a legal standpoint Korea IS right about this, the islands ARE theirs.

As to the bill itself. In a cash culture it's about time. Cab drivers and convenience store clerks will hate it but everyone else will love it.