Chun Doo Hwan
(b. 1932). Chun Doo Hwan was the president of South Korea from 1980 until 1987, when his handpicked successor Roh Tae Woo succeeded him. Born in 1932, Chun was raised in North Kyongsang Province, where he was a student at Taegu Middle School. Before he could finish, Chun transferred to the Korean Military Academy, from which he graduated in 1955.
After graduating from the Korean Military Academy, Chun quickly moved up the ranks, holding various army appointments before being named to the Supreme Council for National Reconstruction. Shortly thereafter, Chun was named the chief of the newly formed Korean Central Intelligence Agency before being named Commander of the Capital Garrison. Like his successor, Roh Tae Woo, Chun saw action in Vietnam as a member of the South Korean forces fighting with the Americans.
In 1979, Chun was named the Commander of the Defense Security Command. Following the assassinationof President Park Chung Hee (1917–1979) in October 1979, Chun and a group of coconspirators seized control of the military. He was responsible for the brutal suppression of the Kwangju Uprising, a reaction against the military's control of politics in Korea, in May 1980. In August 1980, Chun eased out acting president Ch'oe Kyu-ha and took over the position; he was formally elected president in February 1981.
President Chun Doo Hwan and U.S. President Ronald Reagan at the White House on 26 April 1985. (BETTMANN/CORBIS)Chun's term in office can best be characterized by his attempt to open negotiations with North Korea— with little success. Domestically, Chun is best known for his relaxation of the restrictions imposed by the Yushin Constitution.
Further Reading
Clark, Donald. N., ed. (1988) The Kwangju Uprising: Shadows Over the Regime in South Korea. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
Kim, Ilpyong J. and Young Whan Kihl, eds. (1988) Political Change in South Korea. St. Paul, MN: Paragon House.
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