As countries go, Korea, both the communist north and the democratic south are fairly young. They have been in existence only since 1947, a period of about 67 years. But as a culture, Korea is an ancient country, second oldest in northeast Asia. Korea can lay claim to its early foundation going back more than 3000 years.
Although the north and the south began at the same time, it is the south, the Republic of Korea, that has far surpassed the north as well as many other countries in the world, when it comes to economic and technological development. This is largely due to South Korea's third president Park Chung Hee. Actually he was the second president, the interim president after the coup d'état, President Yun lasted only from 1961 when Rhee was overthrown until Park was elected in 1963.
The first president Rhee Syng Man (1947-1961), was embroiled in a devastating war that took place from 1950 to 1953. The war set back both Koreas several decades in development due to devastation that both sides suffered. Aside from the problem of war, Rhee was a dictator, and despite his American education (he had a Ph.D in Political Science from Princeton University), or, as some say, because of it, he was more preoccupied with maintaining his power than economic development. It wasn't until he was overthrown and Park took over, that South Korea began to experience some improvement. Park was a dictator as well, and ultimately assassinated. But despite all his faults and blame that he received, it was he who put South Korea on the track for what some call a miraculous economic recovery.
Park Chung Hee was born in 1917 during Japanese rule. He studied at Kyongbuk University and received a degree to become a teacher. But he wasn't satisfied with being a teacher, so he applied for a Registered Alias, tsushomei, and became Tagaki Masao and entered the Changchun Military Academy of the famous Kwantung Army in Manchuria. He graduated at the top of his class in 1942. His Japanese superiors were so impressed with him that they sent him to Japan for further studies at the Imperial Japanese Army Academy from which he graduated in 1944, third in his class! He was assigned to Kwantung Army as a Lieutenant and he saw some action in China before the war ended. After the war he was repatriated to south Korea, his original home. In South Korea he joined the newly formed South Korean Constabulary Army under U.S. Military Government, and received a commission as a Captain. When South Korea became a nation in 1947, he simply transitioned into the new South Korean Army. A few years later he was promoted to Major when the war broke out in 1950. He distinguished himself during the war and rose rapidly in rank, becoming a Brigadier General at the end of the war in 1953. Ultimately he became the Chief of Staff, a four star general in 1963. Shortly after that, he became the president of South Korea (1963-1979). He narrowly defeated the incumbent (interim) President Yun in the election.
Park was a dictator and he ran the country like a general, but he also put South Korea on the right path for economic recovery. Korea was poor, decades behind Japan. The war had really taken its toll and it was hard to come up with a plan for economic growth. Unlike Japan, which didn't have to spend but a fraction of its GNP for its defense, South Korea had to maintain a strong military, for the north was and still is a constant threat. To maintain a strong military, just about all of the country's resources had to be used for the military, there just wasn't any possibility for economic growth in such a small, resource poor country under such circumstances.
Then the war in Vietnam began to escalate and President Johnson tried to form a coalition of sorts. He managed to get Australia to send troops, even Philippines sent an engineering battalion. But the largest contingent was sent by South Korea. The Republic of Korea sent two Army Infantry Divisions, a Marine Corps Brigade, as well as a Special Forces Battalion. Before South Korea pulled out its troops several years later, a third Army Infantry Division was sent as well as an additional Marine Corps Brigade. In short South Korea had a substantial combat unit presence and these units saw a lot of action.
The price for South Korea's very unpopular (at home) participation in Vietnam was that Korea supplied all of combat uniforms and boots that were worn by Vietnamese and other allied troops. Additionally, ammunition for 5.56mm (M-16 round) was made in Korea. Before the war's end, all of small arms ammunition that was used by Vietnamese, as well as some that was used by the U.S. troops, was made in Korea! In addition to uniforms, boots, and ammunition, Koreans began to supply all other pieces of equipment like web gear, ammo pouches, etc.
It was an immediate shot in the arm for Korean economy and the birth of the so-called "Han River Miracle." Even before the Vietnam war ended, many of the Korean manufacturers of war goods began to transition to civilian goods. Uniform makers started to make civilian clothes and boots manufacturers started making sneakers. In the mid 1970s popular sneaker brands began to appear with labels that said "Made in Republic of Korea." Casual wear and sportswear also started to show up that were made in Korea.
Park Chung Hee was a dictator, of that there is no doubt. He did some terrible things during his time as the President of the Republic of Korea. His KCIA, the Korean Central Intelligence Agency, gained tremendous power, ultimately also bringing about his death! He made arrests and imprisoned anyone who opposed him politically. In short, he was a typical dictator, not quite as bad as his counterpart in the north, not quite as ruthless. At least Park maintained a façade of a democratic leader, and he was interested in getting South Korea on its feet economically. But otherwise, he was just a dictator. He was hated and feared by some, while others said that Korea needed a strong leader and that he at least put the country on the right path for recovery.
Park surrounded himself with a so-called "Hamkyong-do Mafia," a group of generals who were originally from the northern province of Hamkyong-do. They were a tight group and rarely let any outsiders into their inner circle. It was, therefore, somewhat unusual that Park was part of that group, for Park was from a southern province of Kyongbuk-do. Everyone just assumed that because he was a military man, a general, he became part of that group. As it turned out, they really did not trust him all that much. But, ultimately, it was the head of KCIA, Kim Jae Kyu, a lifelong friend, who assassinated him at a dinner party, shot him from across the table! Kim was from the same province as Park and graduated from the same university as a teacher as well! He was a Lieutenant General in the Army before Park appointed him to be the Chief of KCIA.
Park Chung Hee's legacy lives on. His daughter Park Geun Hye is now the president of South Korea, and she has done remarkable things in the short time she has been in the office. In the next blog, I will discuss Park Geun Hye, Republic of Korea's woman president, the first female national leader in northeast Asia since the Dowager Empress of China during the Ching Dynasty. But unlike the Dowager Empress, Park Geun Hye was elected by the people!
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