- Masood hits first ton for four years to power Pakistan to 233-1
- Fritz wins delayed match to reach Shanghai Masters third round
- Naomi Osaka pulls out of Japan Open with back injury
- Weather may delay launch of mission to study deflected asteroid
- China to flesh out economic stimulus plans after bumper rally
- Artist Marina Abramovic hopes first China show offers tech respite
- Asian markets track Wall St rally on US jobs data
- Pakistan 122-1 at lunch in first England Test
- Kazakhs approve plan for first nuclear power plant
- World marks anniversary of Oct. 7 attack on Israel
- 'Second family': tennis stars hunt winning formula with new coaches
- Philippines, South Korea agree to deepen maritime cooperation
- Mexico mayor murdered days after taking office
- Sardinia's sheep farmers battle bluetongue as climate warms
- Japan govt admits doctoring 'untidy' cabinet photo
- Israel marks first anniversary of Hamas's October 7 attack
- Darvish tames Ohtani as Padres thrash Dodgers
- Asian markets track Wall St rally on jobs data
- Family affair as LeBron, Bronny James make Lakers bow
- Cancer, cardiovascular drugs tipped for Nobel as prize week opens
- As Great Salt Lake dries, Utah Republicans pardon Trump climate skepticism
- Amazon activist warns of 'critical situation' ahead of UN forum
- Mourners pay tribute to latest victims of deadly Channel crossing
- Tunisia incumbent Saied set to win presidential vote: exit polls
- Phillies win thriller to level Mets series
- Yu bags first PGA Tour win with playoff win
- PSG held by Nice to leave Monaco clear at top of Ligue 1
- AC Milan fall at Fiorentina after De Gea's penalty heroics
- Lewandowski treble for leaders Barca as Atletico held
- Fresh Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Sucic stunner earns Real Sociedad draw against Atletico
- PSG draw with Nice, fail to reclaim top spot in Ligue 1
- Gudmundsson downs AC Milan after De Gea's penalty heroics for Fiorentina
- 'Yes' vote prevails in Kazakhstan nuclear plant vote: TV
- 'Difficult day': Oct 7 commemorations begin with festival memorial
- Commemorations begin for anniversary of attack on Israel
- Lewandowski hat-trick powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- 'Nothing gets in way of team,' says Celtics' MVP hopeful Tatum
- India maintain Pakistan stranglehold as Windies cruise at Women's T20 World Cup
- 'We will win!': Mozambique's ruling party confident at final vote rally
- Tunisia voting ends as Saied eyes re-election with critics behind bars
- Florida braces for Milton, FEMA head slams 'dangerous' Helene misinformation
- Postecoglou slams 'unacceptable' Spurs after 'terrible' loss at Brighton
- Marmoush double denies Bayern outright Bundesliga top spot
- Rallies worldwide call for Gaza, Lebanon ceasefire
- Maresca hails Chelsea's 'fighting' spirit after draw with 10-man Forest
- New 'Joker' film, a dark musical, tops N.America box office
- Man Utd stalemate keeps Ten Hag in danger, Spurs rocked by Brighton
- Drowned by hurricane, remote N.Carolina towns now struggle for water
- Vikings hold off Jets in London to stay unbeaten
Working-class hero? Ex-factory boy aims for South Korean presidency
Cultural hits from Netflix show "Squid Game" to Oscar-winner "Parasite" have raised South Korean inequality to global prominence, and one presidential hopeful claims his working-class credentials make him the best man to fix a broken system.
Former child factory worker Lee Jae-myung, a school dropout maimed in an industrial accident as a teen, is the ruling Democratic Party's maverick candidate in the March 9 election.
A rarity for politicians in status-obsessed South Korea, Lee is playing up his rags-to-riches tale in a bid to convince voters he can solve their economic woes.
Sky-high real estate prices, stagnant growth and stubborn youth unemployment are among voters' top concerns in an election where polling is neck-and-neck and the campaign has been dominated by mud-slinging.
From universal basic income to government-funded hair-loss treatment, former mayor and provincial governor Lee is proposing a slew of unorthodox policies that his campaign says are a reflection of his impoverished childhood.
"You can worry about people outside shivering in the cold while you sit in your warm living room," Lee told AFP in an exclusive interview in his campaign van.
"But you can never really understand their pain."
The opposition decries his proposals as populist, saying Lee is trying to "buy votes with free money" and will "burden the next generation with debt".
And a series of scandals have marred Lee's run for top office: his wife was accused of misappropriating public funds; he is being scrutinised over a suspect land development deal, and he is dogged by rumours of mafia ties.
He started his campaign by being forced to apologise for a profanity-laden family phone call, and was the subject of a controversial book describing his efforts to section his brother in a mental hospital.
- No bow tie -
Last year, his campaign published two photographs: one showing a floppy-haired young Lee in an ill-fitting suit, the other of teenage Yoon Suk-yeol, the presidential candidate for the People Power Party, in a bow tie.
It was an effort to hammer home the contrast between Yoon, raised in an affluent family, and Lee, who dropped out of school at 11 then put himself through night school.
Lee's story appears to resonate with supporters. At a recent rally in the central city of Cheongju, many waved placards saying: "Only those who know the pain of hunger understand the tears of the ordinary people."
But it is unclear whether it will be enough to propel him to victory in a tight race, with most recent polls falling within the margin for error. One survey released Tuesday showed Yoon in the lead by 2.5 percent.
Political analyst Park Sang-byoung said how the candidates perform in two upcoming televised debates, and whether they can broaden their message to attract swing voters, would be decisive.
In the 1970s, Lee was working in a glove factory as South Korea underwent a rapid economic rise, largely driven by manufacturing.
Labour rights activist Chun Soon-ok, whose brother self-immolated to protest brutal working conditions in South Korean factories back then, said it was a terrible time for manual labourers.
"Managers at the time didn't treat us as human beings," she said.
Lee told AFP: "It was a repressive era and managers dressed in military uniform would beat up junior workers. I figured I could only save myself from a beating if I became a manager, a position that required a high school degree."
After his arm got stuck in a press aged 13, he was left permanently disabled and became "suicidal", but night school and a law school scholarship gave him a way out.
He became a human rights lawyer, before entering politics in 2010.
It is "unheard of" for a former child labourer to become an elected politician, said Lee Sang-don, a former MP who taught Lee law at university in the early 1980s.
Although other politicians such as former president Roh Moo-hyun have grown up poor, South Korea's legislature is dominated by the wealthy and well-connected, with most parliamentarians classed as millionaires according to their declared assets.
- Universal basic income -
Lee's political rise has coincided with growing domestic concern over inequality, and his move in 2019 as governor of Gyeonggi province to give cash handouts to young adults captured the zeitgeist.
He also rolled out free school uniforms and free maternity care, and in early 2020 offered his constituents the country's first pandemic relief funds.
If he wins next month, he has pledged to expand his universal basic income scheme nationwide, saying he'll give 1 million won ($835) each year to every adult.
"I had to work in a factory because I couldn't pay for school," he told AFP, explaining his rationale.
"My parents were cleaners. I escaped poverty, but many around me are still stuck... I want to change the system."
T.Ward--AMWN