Yun Bo-seon

Yun Bo-seon 윤보선
2nd President of South Korea
In office August 13, 1960 – March 22, 1962
Prime Minister	Ho Chong Chang Myon Jang Do-young Song Yo-chan
Preceded by	Syngman Rhee
Succeeded by	Park Chung-hee
5th Vice President of South Korea
In office April 23, 1960 – April 26, 1960
President	Syngman Rhee
Preceded by	Chang Myon
Succeeded by	Heo Jeong
Personal details
Born	(1897-08-26)August 26, 1897 Asan, South Chungcheong, Kingdom of Korea
Died	July 18, 1990(1990-07-18) (aged 92) Anguk, Jongno District, Seoul, South Korea
Nationality	Korean
Political party	Democratic → New Democratic (1960) → New Democratic (1967)
Spouse(s)	Lady Min (1915?–1937), Gong Deok-gwi (1948–1990)
Alma mater	University of Edinburgh (B.A., M.A.)
Religion	Presbyterian

Yun Bo-seon (Korean pronunciation: [junbosʌn] Korea: 윤보선, Hanja: 尹潽善, August 26, 1897 – July 18, 1990) was a Korean independence activist and politician, who served as the second President of South Korea from 1960 to 1962 before being replaced by the long-serving Park Chung-hee. 5.16 in 1961 after the military coup, he announced a statement of resignation of the President. Despite the collapse of the Democratic regime, he has overturned a statement of resignation which is asked by the military. Having entered politics after World War II, Yun served as Secretary to Korea's Chief of Staff in 1947; and was Mayor of Seoul in 1948. He served as Commerce Minister for the newly liberated Korea from 1949–1950. In 1955 Yun helped establish the South Korean Democratic Party.

Early life

Yun Bo-seon was born in Dunpo, Asan County, Chungcheongnam-do, in 1897. He was a son of Yun Chi-So (윤치소, 1871–1944) and Lady Lee Bum-Sook (이범숙, 1876–1969). Yun studied in the United Kingdom, graduating with an M.A. from the University of Edinburgh in 1930. He returned to Korea in 1932.

Political career

Yun entered politics in 1945 following Liberation Day (or Gwangbokjeol). The first Doctor of Philosophy from Princeton University in Korea, as well as first President of South Korea, Dr. Syngman Rhee, was his mentor. By 1947, Yun was serving as Secretary to the Korean Chief of Staff. In 1948, Rhee appointed Yun to the position of mayor of Seoul. A year later, he was made Minister of Commerce and Industry. However, Yun soon began to disagree with Rhee's authoritarian policies.

While serving as president of the Red Cross Society, he was elected to the National Assembly in 1954. A year later, he co-founded the opposition South Korean Democratic Party. In 1959, he became a representative to the Supreme Council of the Democratic Party.

Short term presidency

Rhee's government was ousted by a student-led, pro-democracy uprising in 1960; and Yun was elected president on August 13. In response to the authoritarian excesses of Rhee's regime, South Korea had switched to a parliamentary system; so in fact Yun served merely as a figurehead.

Following Park Chung Hee's coup in 1961, Yun stayed on in order to provide some legitimacy to the new regime, but resigned on March 22, 1962. In the following years, Yun received suspended sentences several times for anti-government activities. He opposed Park's authoritarian rule and ran for president twice, in 1963 and 1967, losing each time.

Yun retired from active politics in 1980 and focused his life on cultural activities until his death in 1990.

Awards

• Grand Order of Mugunghwa (무궁화 대훈장)
• In-Cheon Cultural Award^[1]

See also

• Yun Chi-ho
• Yun Chi-Oh
• Yun Chi-Young
• Chang Myon
• Jang Jun-ha

References

Further reading

• "Road of Thorns; The National Salvation"; autobiography; (구국의 가시밭길)》 (1967)
• "Select the Days of Lonely"; (외로운 선택의 나날들)》 (1991)

External links

• Yun Bo-Seon-Naver
• Cheongwadae profile
• Yun's Family Site

v t e Presidents of South Korea (List) Syngman Rhee Heo Jeong (Acting) Yun Bo-seon Park Chung-hee Choi Kyu-hah Chun Doo-hwan Roh Tae-woo Kim Young-sam Kim Dae-jung Roh Moo-hyun Goh Kun (Acting) Roh Moo-hyun Lee Myung-bak Park Geun-hye