In praise of the farsighted first president

we must highly appreciate his wisdom and leadership at times of uncertainties.

Chung Un-chanThe author, a former prime minister and former president of Seoul National University, is the chairman of the Korea Institute for Shared Growth.

The span of the last three-fourths of a century — specifically from 1948 to 2023 — in the context of the Korean history of thousands of years is as fleeting as in the blink of an eye. But the achievements and advances Korea has made since its modern foundation 75 years ago far overwhelm the past glory. The country has wondrously pulled itself out of poverty and shifted from an aid receiver to a doner. A small and bisected country in the Far East has joined the ranks of a top-tier economy with riches in freedom and wealth.

The secret to the success was the establishment of a free democracy and market economy. Based on the foundation, Korea succeeded in a revolutionary land reform to end the feudal and colonial traditions and defended the nation against the North Korean invasion. A mutual defense treaty with the United States ensured security to help our economy flourish. The credit goes to founding President Syngman Rhee (1875–1965). If Korea had surrendered to the North and become a communist state, we could be living in the world’s poorest and most oppressive society.

Korea’s first president remains underrated, with his follies still towering over his achievements. The great or not-so-great leaders of the past should be judged within the context of their times. Their legacy — a historic role and contribution — must be taught based on the circumstances of their times so that we can view history in a positive light and build the pioneering spirit to fight the challenges of the time.

I had the experience of actually seeing President Rhee in person on April 26, 1960, a month after I entered middle school. I had been living in a town in the hills of Dongsung-dong near Ehwajang, the family residence of Rhee. He had just returned to his old home in northern Seoul after leaving the presidential office by stepping down “in humble compliance to the wishes of the people.” I still remember the teary elderly gentleman who waved to the crowds as he returned home.

On Oct. 3, 2012, Princeton University, where Rhee earned a doctoral degree, dedicated a lecture hall in honor of Korea’s first president at the request of the Princeton Club of Korea. I gave a lecture after the opening ceremony. It was titled “Hope, Compassion, and the Can-do Spirit: President Syngman Rhee and Korea’s Path Forward.”

I gave an interview to the university newspaper after the lecture. When I was asked about the controversy about Rhee, I said, “If not for him, there would not be South Korea of today.” Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping, who elevated the country through reforms, once evaluated his predecessor Ma Zedong as a leader “70 percent right and 30 percent wrong.” I added that Rhee deserved more than that.

Syngman Rhee, the first president of Korea, is welcomed by then-U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower at the White House during his visit to the United States on July 26, 1954.

This year marks the 100th year since Rhee wrote an essay arguing against the idea of establishing a communist party in Korea in the Korean-language Pacific Magazine he launched while residing in Hawaii. In the essay, he wrote, “The class system was upended through the French Revolution and the U.S. Republicanism for the first time in mankind’s history, and slavery was abolished in America to breed the seed of equality. But capitalism has widened the gap in wealth to create economic class. Communism’s argument for an equal society is right. But distributing wealth equally is not right.”

Rhee projected the doom of communism as it defies human nature to seek freedom. I cannot but admire his piercing insight through the reality of the Communist Party just six years after the Russian Revolution in 1917. Many intellectuals in Western society praised Russia for adopting communism in the aftermath of WWI.

Rhee has taught us the value of economic equality and gave us the gift of free democracy. Shared growth is the solution to the low growth and inequality. The idea is to create a society where everyone lives happily and grows in harmony and fairness. A society can truly achieve shared wellness when well-educated talents can pursue growth through their ideas and inventions, opportunities are fairly given, a fair playing field is assured and people have hope of becoming wealthier. A mature, free democracy can be rooted in such an inclusive society.

Rhee was a pioneer who saw through the movement of world history and tried to end the accumulating contradictions of Korean society. He was a great thinker and independence activist who wanted to awaken the people of his home country. He was also a statesman who excelled in international politics. We must highly appreciate his wisdom and leadership at times of uncertainties and upheaval in international politics — just like these days.

Translation by the Korea JoongAng Dasily staff.