Das Internet - eine Plattform für politische Partizipation in Japan und Korea: Die Diskussion um die Truppenentsendung in den Irak

In December 2003, both the Japanese and South Korean governments decided to dispatch troops to Iraq to participate in reconstruction efforts. The political situation was quite similar: Both governments quoted the need to demonstrate loyalty to alliance partner US in light of the threat from North Korea as their main reason for sending troops, and in both countries the majority of citizens was strongly opposed to the dispatch of troops. This paper compares the very different use of the Internet as a forum for public debate in the run-up to the decision in each country. Why did, in spite of the similarities, the use of the Internet as a public sphere - one could say the character of e-politics - differ so greatly in Japan and Korea? After a background briefing and an analysis of the debate in various online forum, we offer some tentative explanations for the differences.