| BUSINESSWEEK ONLINE : JUNE 14, 1999 ISSUE | ||||||||
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| INTERNATIONAL -- ASIAN COVER STORY
Jang Ha Sung, Shareholder Activist, South Korea (int'l edition) JANG HA SUNG, 45, IS NOT YOUR AVERAGE ACADEMIC. When not teaching finance at Korea University, he is trying to make South Korea's large conglomerates, or chaebol, more accountable to minority shareholders. His advocacy group, the People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy, has won several milestone court victories in its crusade to get the chaebol to, among other things, stop shifting funds from healthy, listed companies to weaker affiliates. Jang's biggest wins have come at chaebol annual meetings, where his questions have proven a nuisance to the reform-shy behemoths. His latest efforts paid off. He persuaded mobile phone carrier SK Telecom Co. to set up an independent committee to audit its books. And he got Samsung Electronics to take measures that Jang says will prevent the company from fudging its accounts. Small steps, maybe, but they are moving Korea in the right direction. Jang's revolutionary nature may be a function of his birthplace. He's from the southern city of Kwangju, famous for past labor uprisings. And he follows an example set by his grandfather, who fought for Korea's independence during Japanese colonial rule. In the early 1970s, Jang joined thousands in pro-democracy protests. But it was after earning a PhD in finance at Wharton in the 1980s that he first grasped the flaws in Korea's business culture. Upon his return, he took up a crusade that only gained momentum during the financial crisis. ''People wonder why I'm doing this when I can do other things,'' says Jang, whose background could allow him a cozy job at a chaebol of his choice. Despite all he's accomplished, Jang's crusade is far from over. ''Even if I wanted to give up, I can't,'' he says over the classical music he plays in his office to soothe his frustration. ''I'm riding a horse, and if I get off while it's moving I'll only hurt myself. I have to bring at least one positive result to society.'' _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ BACK TO TOP |
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