Right next door to Japan, South Korea just impeached a right-wing President and elected a left-wing guy instead. The new President has vowed to strip domestic s

Right next door to Japan, South Korea just impeached a right-wing President and elected a left-wing guy instead. The new President has vowed to strip domestic surveillance powers from NIS (national intelligence service), the Korean counterpart to CIA. Last year, members of three opposition parties collectively filibustered an anti-terrorism bill (granting more domestic surveillance powers to NIS) for 192 hours and 27 minutes, setting a world record by a wide margin. Although the ruling party eventually forced the bill through, the media spotlight on the filibuster helped the opposition grab a lot more seats in the general election shortly afterward. The impeachment ten months later could not have happened without the new balance of power caused by that filibuster. I don't think surveillance has ever been such a consequential issue in the mainstream politics of any other country so far. So if anyone is in a mood to try a bit less surveillance on its own people, I think South Korea just might be.