Chough Pyung-ok (also Cho Pyung-ok or Cho Byeong-ok; 1894 – 1960) was a South Korean politician. He ran against incumbent president
Syngman Rhee
Syngman Rhee (, ; 26 March 1875 – 19 July 1965) was a South Korean politician who served as the first president of South Korea from 1948 to 1960.
Rhee was also the first and last president of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Ko ...
in the
1960 presidential election but died on February 15, one month before the election on March 15. Rhee received 90% of the vote. He was the first Director of the
Korean National Police
The Korean National Police Agency (KNPA), also known as the Korean National Police (KNP), is one of the national police organizations in South Korea. It is run under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety. Its headquarters is 97, Tongil-ro, Seo ...
from 1945 to 1949 and Minister of Home Affairs during the early stages of the
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
.
Biography
Born in
Mokcheon, a neighbourhood in
Cheonan,
Chungcheongnam-do
South Chungcheong Province ( ko, 충청남도, ''Chungcheongnam-do''), also known as Chungnam, is a province of South Korea. South Chungcheong has a population of 2,059,871 (2014) and has a geographic area of 8,204 km2 (3,168 sq mi) located in ...
, in 1894, Chough's family was wealthy and in 1914, sent him to the United States for his education. He attended a high school in
Kingston in the state of
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
before going on to study at
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
in
New York. He graduated with a
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
in 1922 and proceed to gain a
Doctorate
A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''l ...
in Economics in 1925.
On completing his tertiary education, Chough returned to Korea and worked as a teacher at
Chǒson Christian College. A nationalist, he was imprisoned in 1929 by the Japanese authorities for his activities. In September 1945, following the end of the Japanese occupation, he was one of the founding members of the conservative
Korean Democratic Party
The Korean Social Democratic Party (KSDP) is a political party in North Korea, allied with the ruling Workers' Party of Korea. It was formed on 3 November 1945 as the Korean Democratic Party by a diverse group of medium and small entrepreneurs, ...
(KDP). The following month, under the American Military Government, established to control the southern half of Korea as it prepared for independence, Chough became director of the
Korean National Police
The Korean National Police Agency (KNPA), also known as the Korean National Police (KNP), is one of the national police organizations in South Korea. It is run under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety. Its headquarters is 97, Tongil-ro, Seo ...
; he was selected for the role by the Americans. In some quarters of the American Military Government there was dislike for his harsh methods against Korean communists, but he was otherwise deemed to be capable.
Following the establishment of the
Republic of Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its east ...
(ROK) in 1948, Chough was the country's representative to the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
. He was also an emissary for
Syngman Rhee
Syngman Rhee (, ; 26 March 1875 – 19 July 1965) was a South Korean politician who served as the first president of South Korea from 1948 to 1960.
Rhee was also the first and last president of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Ko ...
, the country's first president. In July 1950, he was appointed Minister of Home Affairs. With the ROK now embroiled in a conflict with North Korea, following the latter's invasion of the south, he worked to boost the numbers and provisions of the KNP. Much of the KNP's work involved dealing with North Korean infiltrators that were moving to the south, hidden amongst refugees. By November 1950, he claimed that the KNP had arrested over 55,000 "collaborators and traitors". He fell out with Rhee after the
Geochang massacre
The Geochang massacre ( ko, 거창 양민학살 사건, Hanja: 居昌良民虐殺事件) was a massacre conducted by the third battalion of the 9th regiment of the 11th Division of the South Korean Army between 9 February 1951 and 11 February ...
; Rhee had interfered with the resulting investigation and released the perpetrators under an amnesty. In early 1951, Chough resigned his ministerial post in protest.
He continued to be critical of Rhee, particularly at time of the latter's unilateral decision in mid-1953 to release North Korean prisoners of war during the
armistice talks at
Panmunjom
Panmunjom, also known as Panmunjeom, now located in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea or Kaesong, North Hwanghae Province, North Korea, was a village just north of the ''de facto'' border between North and South Korea, where the 1953 Korea ...
. Chough argued that this negatively impacted the ROK's diplomatic relationships. By 1956, he had risen to be head of the KDP. In the
1960 presidential election, Chough was the KDP's candidate for the presidency of the ROK, opposing Rhee. However, partway through the campaign Chough took ill with cancer. Taken to the United States for medical treatment at
Walter Reed Army Medical Center
The Walter Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC)known as Walter Reed General Hospital (WRGH) until 1951was the United States Army, U.S. Army's flagship medical center from 1909 to 2011. Located on in the Washington, D.C., District of Columbia, it se ...
in
Washington, DC
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...
, he died there in February 15, 1960.
Works
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Notes
References
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External links
Cho Byeong-ok
Cho Byeong-ok
Cho Byeong-ok
Cho Byeong-ok
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chough, Pyung-ok
1894 births
1960 deaths
Korean politicians
Korean independence activists
Korean revolutionaries
South Korean anti-communists
South Korean Roman Catholics
Kim Kyu-sik
Soh Jaipil
Yun Chi-ho
Korean educators
Columbia University alumni
Democratic Party (South Korea, 1955) politicians