Thatcher’s leadership

On April 2, 1982, Argentina invaded the Falklands, a British oversees territory. A country’s commander-in-chief must safeguard the sovereignty of his or her territory. Then British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher sent warships and ordered restoring the islands. Thatcher, who showed stronger war leadership than any other male leaders until Argentina surrendered on June 14 that year, has passed away Monday.

When then U.S. President Ronald Reagan dissuaded her to stop the war, she said, “You should have done the same thing should Alaska had been invaded.” When the war ended, she impressed the British people by sending letters to all of 255 bereaved families. As the first female Prime Minister of Britain, she showed a bolder and stronger leadership than any other male leaders and broke prejudices toward female politicians. Thatcher’s leadership in safeguarding the country could send a message to the Park Geun-hye administration under North Korea`s threat of impending war.

Her nickname the “Iron Lady” stemmed from a 1976 speech in which she said, “The first duty of the government is to protect its people from external attack.” Although the former Soviet Union coined it to criticize her, she welcomed it as the best gift. She was a believer in freedom, who claimed that a country can be stronger when individuals can lead a life of liberty without the government’s oppression. In the run-up to the general elections in 1951, she stressed that western countries should stand up against communism, mentioning the Korean War.

She emerged as an iconic figure of free democracy and the market economy by collapsing the “evil empire” Soviet Union and ending the Cold War together with Reagan after penetrating the essence of Soviet Union`s totalitarianism. North Korea is supposed to collapse sometime because it has abused the freedom and human rights of its 23 million residents. President Park is hoped to take the iron lady as her role model when she has to show a staunch leadership against North Korea.

Thatcherism cured the “British diseases” of low growth, high unemployment, high inflation, and frivolous strikes in the 1970s with freedom, privatization, and deregulation. Some say she revived the U.K. and the market economy to change the world history. Her patriotism that she cannot let her country collapse and her market principle that one should not spend more than one makes are still valid to us. The Economist said, “What the world needs now is more Thatcherism, not less.” In her later years, she had to step down from politics due of her imperial style. She was a great leader who has taught us that one has to change constantly to remain constant. May she rest in peace.