Yi Cheol-seung (; May 15, 1922 – February 27, 2016) was a South Korean politician who served in the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

for seven terms. Lee was an advocate for the Korean independence movement, democracy, anti-

communism Communism () is a political sociology, sociopolitical, political philosophy, philosophical, and economic ideology, economic ideology within the history of socialism, socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a ...

, anti-military rule, and

non-governmental organizations A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...

. After Korea was liberated from Japanese colonial rule in 1945, Lee led a student union that under the United States and Soviet Union. He eventually entered politics in 1954 after winning a parliamentary seat. Lee and his two political rivals, former Presidents Kim Young-sam and Kim Dae-jung, were famous for their political competition and the establishment and development of democracy in South Korea. He was given buried in the Seoul National Cemetery on March 2, 2016.

Early life and education

* 1949 – B.A. in Political Science, Korea University * 1962 – Studied at the Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania in International Relations * 1995 – Honorary Doctor in Literature from Woosuk University * 1998 – Honorary Doctor in Political Science from Korea University

Political career

The following is a timeline of his career.

Independence activist

1946 * Chairman, Central Committee, Anti-Trustee Students Assembly * Chairman, Central Committee, National Students Assembly

National Assembly

1954 * Member, The 3rd National Assembly (Jeonju, Independent) 1958~1961 * Member, The 4th National Assembly (Jeonju, Democratic Party) * The 5th National Assembly (Jeonju, Democratic Party) 1961 * Korean Delegate to the 15th U.N. General Assembly * Chairman, Korea Sports Council * President, Korea Weightlifting Federation 1966 * Chairman, Asia Weightlifting Federation 1969 * Chairman, Asia Weightlifting Federation 1971~1973 * Member, The 8th National Assembly (Jeonju, New Democratic Party) * Chairman, Korean Policy Research Institute 1973 * Member, The 9th National Assembly (Jeonju, New Democratic Party) * Vice Speaker of the National Assembly 1975 * Korean Delegate to the 30th U.N. General Assembly 1976 * Representative Supreme Member, New Democratic Party 1978 * Member, The 10th National Assembly (Jeonju, Wanju, New Democratic Party) 1984~ * President, Council for Commemorative Projects for Korea's Anti-trusteeship & Anti-communism Student's Movement 1985 * Member, The 12th National Assembly (Jeonju, New Democratic Party) 1987 * 자유민주총연맹 총재

Political exile

On May 16, 1961,

Park Chung Hee Park Chung Hee (; ; November14, 1917October26, 1979) was a South Korean politician and army officer who served as the third president of South Korea from 1962 after he seized power in the May 16 coup of 1961 until Assassination of Park Chung ...

, Kim Jong-pil, and Lee Nak-sun successfully staged a military coup d'etat. Immediately after,

sent aides to try and win over key opposition lawmakers including Lee who rejected Park's request for help. Lee was forced to leave politics and went to the United States where he was vocally opposed to the military coup in Korea and studied political science at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

Post-political career and civil society leadership

1990 * Director, The Seoul Peace Prize * Member, The Seoul Peace Prize Selection Committee 1993 * Director, Commemorative Committee for "Patriotic Martyr in Yeosoon" 1994~ * Co-chairman, National Council for Freedom and Democracy 1995~ * Advisor, Korea Eligible Senior Voters Federation 1996~ * Chairman, Seoul Peace Prize Cultural Foundation and President, the Seoul Peace Prize Selection Committee * Member, Organizing Committee for the 2002 World Cup * Chairman, Association of Patriotic Societies for National Foundation 1998 * Chairman, Preparatory Committee for Commemorative of the Founding of the Republic of Korea 2005 * 자유민주비상국민회의 대표의장 2007 * Chairman, Parliamentarians' Society of the Republic of Korea 2011~2016 * Chairman, The Elders Group of the Parliamentarians' Society of the Republic of Korea

Death

Lee died on February 27, 2016, at 03:45 KST, at Samsung Hospital in Seoul at the age of 94. A funeral was held for him on March 2, 2016, that began with a five-day wake and a police-escorted procession that led to the National Assembly and ended with a gun salute at the Seoul National Cemetery where he is buried along with former South Korean presidents.

Awards

* Order of Service Merit ("Mugunghwa Medal," )

Publications

* ''The Republic of Korea and I'' (; 2011) * ''Oh! Who Will Look After Korea'' (; 2002) * ''A Challenge for Hopelessness'' () * ''Long March to Democracy'' () * ''Pan-National Student Federation'' () * ''The Middle-of-the-Road Integration Theory'' (; 1992) * ''The Sound Argument of Chaotic Period'' * ''A History of Korean Students' National-Building Movement'' * ''How the Republic of Korea was Founded'' (1998) * ''My Political Thoughts for Democratic Development''

References

External links

Lee Chul-seung: National Assembly of South Korea

이철승 "민족지도자를 친일파로…"
동아일보 2005년 1월 26일자 기사
'건국60돌-헌정60돌' 이철승 헌정회장 인터뷰
동아일보 2008년 04월 02일자 * 중앙일보 2011년 05월 24일자

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yi, Cheol-seung 1922 births 2016 deaths Activists for Korean independence South Korean anti-communists South Korean democracy activists South Korean Methodists South Korean civil rights activists South Korean journalists South Korean religious leaders Democratic Party (South Korea, 1955) politicians Politicians from North Jeolla Province Ramon Magsaysay Award winners Members of the National Assembly (South Korea)