ASIA

I. SOUTH KOREA
HISTORY
The establishment of the US military government in Incheon on September 8, 1945 after
the defeat of the Japanese to the Allied Powers signals the beginning of South Korea’s history.
Lt. General John R. Hodge took control of the newly created government. During this period,
South Korea was under great political and economic chaos because of different reasons including
the effects of the war. The nation’s first constitution was established on July 17, 1948 following
the general election of May 10, 1948. Consequently, the First Republic of South Korea was
officially founded on August 15 with Syngman Rhee as the first president.
South Korea’s Second Republic was characterized by immense democratic ruling. Yun Po Sun
was voted president on August 13, 1960 with Prime Minister Chang Myon acting as head of
government. On May 16, 1961 Major General Park Chung-hee headed a coup d’ etat putting that
eventually overthrew the Second Republic. Park was reelected in the 1967 election assumed
presidency for 2 years and again won the elections in 1969 and 1971. During his administration,
South Korea began to establish its international roles in the global community and its economy
also grew significantly. In November 21, 1972, the country adopted the Yusin Constitution that
provided Park with valuable control of the parliament. In 1979, Park was assassinated by Kim
Jae-kyu that resulted in strong opposition against authoritarian rule and the Fifth Republic
emerged. The city of Gwangju witnessed a historical and violent conflicts and riots among
National University students and the armed forces.
The Sixth Republic started with Roh Tae-woo who was elected in 1987 and one of Major
General Chun Doo-hwan’s colleagues. In 1992, Kim Young-sam was elected president and
became South Korea’s first civilian leader in 30 years. During this period, the country pursued
the so-called “Sunshine Policy” which was a progression of efforts to resolve issues with North
Korea.
CAPITAL
 SEOUL
CURRENCY
 1 South Korean Won equals 0.042 Philippine Peso
LANGUAGES
Korean has a number of dialects and the main dialect used in South Korea is the Hanguk
dialect. Other dialects spoken in South Korea are as follows:

 The Yeongseo dialects (영서 방언): These dialects are used in the Yeongseo area located in
Gangwon Province, South Korea.
 The Jeju dialect (제주 방언) : This is used on the Jeju Island located towards the southwest
coast of South Korea. This dialect is at times viewed as a separate Korean language.
 The Seoul dialect (서울말): This dialect is also referred to as Gyeonggi. It is spoken in Seoul,
Gyeonggi, and Incheon in South Korea. It is also spoken in Kaesŏng in North Korea. This
dialect is the foundation of the standard language.
 The Jeolla dialects (전라 방언): These can also be referred to as the South-western dialects
and are used in the Jeolla area (Honam) of South Korea. They are also spoken in Gwangju
city. The dialects have ten vowels: “i, e, ae, a, ü, ö, u,o, eu, and eo”.
 The Gyeongsang dialects (경상 방언): These are also referred to as the South-eastern
dialects and are common in the Gyeongsang (Yeongnam) area of South Korea, and also the
cities of Ulsan, Busan and Daegu. It is very easy to differentiate these dialects from the Seoul
dialect because of their pitch which is more varied. These dialects have six main vowels and
there are ‘i, e, a, eo,o, and u”.
 The Chungcheong dialects (충청 방언): These dialects are spoken in the Chungcheong
(Hoseo) area of South Korea and also in Daejeon city.

GOVERNMENT

The Constitution of the Republic of South Korea divides the national government into 3
branches: executive, judicial, and legislative. Elections are supervised by the National Election
Commission of South Korea.
The Executive office is led by the president. It consists of the State Council, various ministries
and agencies, as and the office of the Presidential Commission. The president is elected every 5
years through a popular voting system with no opportunity for reelection. The president acts as
the head of government, head of state and chief officer of the South Korean armed forces. The
Prime Minister is selected by the president with the approval of the National Assembly. The
prime minister acts an assistant to the president and takes control of the state in case the
president to perform his duties. The South Korean government has 18 ministries each headed by
a minister appointed by the president.
The Legislative branch is constituted by a unicameral legislature, the National Assembly of
South Korea. It has 299 representatives majority of which are elected via single-member
constituencies but 56 are voted by proportional representation. Every member of the National
Assembly serves for 4 years.
The Judicial branch is directed by the Constitutional Court which consists of 9 justices; 3 are
recommended by the president, 3 by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and 3 by the
National Assembly. The president appoints the President of the Constitutional Court with the
support of the National Assembly. Constitutional reviews and deciding impeachment cases are
the main responsibilities of the Constitution Court. The Supreme Court oversees other judicial
affairs which is also serves as the final court of appeal for all cases in South Korean law.
RELIGION
Religion in South Korea has been characterized by a rise of Christianity and a revival
of Buddhism.

COSTUME
  HANBOK

FESTIVALS

 Seollal - New Year's Day

 Daeboreum - First full moon
 Meoseumnal - Festival for servants
 Yongdongje - Celebrating the god of wind
 Jungu - Double Ninth Festival
 Sangdalgosa - Ritual performed to the House gods
 Sondolpoong - Ritual performed to appease the wind
 Chuseok - Harvest festival
 Chilseok - Meeting day of Gyeonwoo and Jiknyeo in Korean folk tale

TRADITIONS

FOODS
TOP TOURIST DESTINATION
 II. PHILIPPINES

HISTORY
As early as 50,000 BC Homo sapiens have existed on the Palawan Island based on
archeological and paleontological evidences. The Australo-Melanesian natives, also called
“Negritos” are believed to arrive in the Philippines some 33,000 years ago.
During the 9th and 12th centuries, the Philippines have begun trading with China, Japan, India,
Malaysia and Indonesia. By the 13th century, Islam is already a recognized religion specifically
in the Mindanao region. The rest of the archipelago is a mixture of Hinduism and Vajrayana
Buddhism. The historical voyage of the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan to the Visayan
Islands paved the way for the religion Christianity and colonization of the Philippines as well.
Philip II of Spain demanded more expeditions until Manila was declared capital of the new
Spanish colony. For more than 300 years, Philippines was under Spanish rule.
In the late 18th century, different revolutionary movements took place. Local citizens are starting
to resist the Spanish government. Revolutionaries insist independence and have emerged to
become the nation’s heroes such as Jose Rizal, Andres Bonifacio, Emilio Aguinaldo, and many
more. The Philippines may have achieved its freedom from the Spaniards but the Americans
soon dissolved the newly formed government. The effects of the World War II made it more
difficult for the Filipinos to regain peace and stability especially after the Japanese invasion. In
July of 1946, the Philippines was granted independence from the United States.
After the centuries of occupation by foreign nations, the Philippines have struggled for decades
to regain its economic and political stability. Historical personalities such as the dictator
Ferdinand Marcos and People Power Revolution heroine Corazon Aquino have made their
marks. The current Arroyo administration has been significantly recognized in providing
economic improvements though haunted by various corruption and social issues.
CAPITAL
 MANILA
CURRENCY
LANGUAGES
There are at least 170 languages and dialects in the Philippines; nearly all of it belongs to
the Borneo-Philippines collection of the Malayo-Polynesian language branch of the Austronesian
language family.
For more than 3 centuries Spanish was the official language of the Philippines and became the
lingua franca in the 19th and early 20th centuries. But after the occupation of the Americans in
the 1940’s and the obligation of using English, Spanish declined steadily. The 1987 Constitution
declares Filipino and English as official languages. Majority of the Filipinos speak, write and
understand Filipino and English. Filipino is de facto standardized translation of Tagalog spoken
in Metropolitan Manila and city centers while English is extensively used as the lingua franca
throughout the country. There are 12 major regional languages or dialects that are still prevalent
in specific provinces: Cebuano, Ilokano, Hiligaynon, Waray-Waray, Bikolano, Kapampangan,
Pangasinan, Maranao, Maguindanao, Kinaray-a, Tausug and Chavacano.
Filipinos prefer to use Filipino or their regional dialects in personal and informal conversations.
English is primarily spoken in education, business, government, medicine, legal system and
various formal ceremonies. School textbooks for subjects such as physics, biology, religion,
calculus, and accounting are widely printed in English as has no Filipino versions. American
movies and TV programs showed in local networks are not subtitled but most films and TV
programs are produced in Filipino.
Spanish is still a subject taught in some universities. Other foreign languages that are spoken in
some areas especially by overseas immigrants are Chinese, Arabic, Japanese and Malay.
GOVERNMENT
The Philippines has a presidential form of government. The President functions as the
head of state and head of government, and is also the commander-in-chief of the armed forces.
The political system works under 3 individual and interdependent branches: Executive,
Legislative, and Judicial.
The Executive branch (law-enforcing body) is under the headship of the president. The president
obtains the position through national voting system; the tenure is a six-year period. The
executive seat of the state is run officially from the Malacañang Palace and also serves as the
official residence of the president. During his or her term, the president can appoint and
terminate any of the cabinet members whom he/she presides over. The Vice-President is the
second highest position and is also elected for a 6-year term through a popular voting system.
Legislative branch (law-making body) is characterized by a bicameral Congress comprising the
Senate and the House of Representatives. Occupying the upper house is the Senate whose 24
members are voted for in a national election with a 6-year term. On the lower house is the House
of Representatives elected to a 3-year term.
The Judicial branch (law-interpreting body) demonstrates its authority to the Supreme Court of
the Philippines as the highest judicial body and presided by a Chief Justice with 14 Associate
Justices; all are appointed by the president under the advice of the Judicial and Bar Council.
The Office of the Ombudsman is the official monitoring body of the government. Its main
purpose is to investigate and take legal actions against any government officials purportedly
responsible of crimes particularly graft and corruption.
RELIGION
The Philippines, alongside East Timor, are the only countries in Asia that are pre-
dominantly Christian. Over 86% of the citizens in the Philippines are Roman Catholics while 9%
practice different Protestant denominations. 5% of the country’s population practices Islam and
the remaining percent practices Buddhism or animistic beliefs.
COSTUME
FESTIVALS
TRADITIONS
FOODS
TOP TOURIST DESTINATION

AFRICA
I. JORDAN
HISTORY
The emergence of Jordan as a nation started when Nabataens built Petra as the capital of
the ancient Arab kingdom between the period 400 B.C.E. and 160 C.E. Mount Nebo which was
located in western Jordan was believed by people as the Promised Land prophesied by Moses.
Four hundred years of rule of Ottoman Empire collapsed and Britain sought the event to divide
the Crescent Land which later on gave birth to modern Jordan.
Among the many Arab countries, Jordan is the only one that allows Palestinians to become
citizens. However, there is still a clear differentiation in the society among its people: Bedouins,
Palestinians, and Jordanians. To determine one's national identity, each is defined. Jordanians are
known as the residents who have lived in the eastern part of the Jordan River prior to 1948.
Palestinians are classified as the residents whose birthright can be traced back to western part of
the Jordan River while the Bedouins are regarded as the purest Arab residents.
The Bedouins have managed to live in the most traditional way for centuries coping with the
reality that they were living in deserts where there was limited source of vegetation and water.
They became nomads who were not really concerned about crossing borders. However, their
political influence eventually diminished even though they possessed key positions. The rise of
Jordanians can be linked to their being hardworking and they put great emphasis on education. It
will be no long when Jordan turned into a richer and global economy as they start to play
important roles in the modern Arab world.
CAPITAL
CURRENCY
LANGUAGES
GOVERNMENT
RELIGION
COSTUME
FESTIVALS
TRADITION
FOODS
TOP TOURIST DESTINATION