Editing Syngman Rhee (section)

==Presidency (1948–1960)==
[[File:Syngman Rhee and Douglas MacArthur.jpg|thumb|right|Rhee and American general [[Douglas MacArthur]] at the ceremony inaugurating the government of South Korea]]
[[File:Ceremony inaugurating the government of the Republic of Korea02.jpg|thumb|right|Ceremony inaugurating the government of the Republic of Korea (15 August 1948) at the [[Government-General of Chōsen Building|Governor-General Building]] in Seoul.]]
{{Conservatism in South Korea|Politicians}}

===Return to Korea and rise to power===
{{Main|First Republic of Korea}}

After the [[surrender of Japan]] on 2 September 1945,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/japan-surrenders |title=Japan surrenders |publisher=[[A+E Networks]] |work=[[History (U.S. TV channel)|History]] |access-date=7 April 2014}}</ref> Rhee was flown to Tokyo aboard a US military aircraft.<ref name="Bruce">{{cite book|last=Cumings |first=Bruce |chapter=38 degrees of separation: a forgotten occupation|title=The Korean War: a History|publisher=Modern Library|year=2010|isbn=978-0-8129-7896-4|page=[https://archive.org/details/koreanwarhistory0000cumi/page/106 106]|url=https://archive.org/details/koreanwarhistory0000cumi|url-access=registration }}</ref> Over the objections of the Department of State, the US military government allowed Rhee to return to Korea by providing him with a passport in October 1945, despite the refusal of the Department of State to issue Rhee with a passport.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title=The Korean War|last=Hastings|first=Max|publisher=Simon and Schuster|year=1988|isbn=9780671668341|pages=[https://archive.org/details/koreanwar00hast_0/page/32 32–34]|ref=Hastings 1988|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/koreanwar00hast_0/page/32}}</ref> The British historian [[Max Hastings]] wrote that there was "at least a measure of corruption in the transaction" as the OSS agent [[Millard Preston Goodfellow|Preston Goodfellow]] who provided Rhee with the passport that allowed him to return to Korea was apparently promised by Rhee that if he came to power, he would reward Goodfellow with commercial concessions."<ref name=":0" /> Following the independence of Korea and a secret meeting with [[Douglas MacArthur]], Rhee was flown in mid-October 1945 to Seoul aboard MacArthur's personal airplane, ''The Bataan''.<ref name="Bruce" />

After the return to Korea, he assumed the posts of president of the Independence Promotion Central Committee ({{Korean|labels=no |hangul=독립촉성중앙위원회 |hanja=獨立促成中央協議會}}), chairman of the [[Representative Democratic Council|Korean People's Representative Democratic Legislature]], and president of the Headquarters for Unification ({{Korean|labels=no |hangul=민족통일총본부 |hanja=民族統一總本部}}). At this point, he was strongly [[anti-communism|anti-communist]] and opposed foreign intervention; he opposed the Soviet Union and the United States' proposal in the [[Moscow Conference (1945)|1945 Moscow Conference]] to establish a trusteeship for Korea. He clashed with the [[Communist Party of Korea|Communist Party]], which supported the trusteeship of the United States, the United Kingdom, China, and the Soviet Union.<ref>{{cite book| title = The Making of Modern Korea | last = Buzo | first = Adrian | year = 2002| publisher = Routledge|  location = London | isbn = 978-0-415-23749-9 |page=59}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | title = Korea| last = Bluth | first = Christoph | year = 2008| publisher = Polity Press| location = Cambridge| isbn = 978-07456-3357-2 |page=12}}</ref> He also refused to join the US-Soviet Joint Commission ({{Korean|labels=no |hangul=미소공동위원회 |hanja=美蘇共同委員會}}) as well as the negotiations with the north.<ref name="EncyKorea" />
 
For decades, the Korean independence movement was torn by factionalism and in-fighting, and most of the leaders of the independence movement hated each other as much as they hated the Japanese. Rhee, who had lived for decades in the United States, was a well-known figure in Korea, and therefore regarded as a more or less acceptable compromise candidate for the conservative factions. Syngman Rhee was such a prominent figure in the Korean independence movement. He was not only endorsed as a leader of Korea by [[Kim Ku]] and [[Lyuh Woon-hyung]], but was even supported by [[Pak Hon-yong]], the head of the Korean Communist Party.<ref>{{citation |last1=Jeon |first1=Bong-gwan |title=Why did the Communist Party of Korea nominate Syngman Rhee as the President of the People's Republic? |date=2023 |publisher=[[The Chosun Ilbo]]|url=https://www.chosun.com/national/weekend/2023/09/02/34D2PAOAKVGARNCH7VGCDKKZVI/}}</ref><ref>{{citation |last1=Yoon |first1=Sang-hyun |title=The Theory of Provisional Government's Legitimacy|date=2011 |publisher=[[Encyclopedia of Korean Culture]]|url=https://encykorea.aks.ac.kr/Article/E0073449}}</ref> He was nominated as the president of both the [[People's Republic of Korea]] and the [[Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea]].<ref>{{citation |last1=Yoon |first1=Sang-hyun |title=People's Republic of Korea|date=2011 |publisher=[[Encyclopedia of Korean Culture]]|url=https://encykorea.aks.ac.kr/Article/E0052184}}</ref><ref>{{citation  |title=National Assembly elects Syngman Rhee as President of the Provisional Government, Kim Ku as Vice President, and by-elects members of the State Council |journal=[[The Chosun Ilbo]], [[The Dong-A Ilbo]]|date=3 March 1947 |publisher=자료대한민국사 |url=https://db.history.go.kr/id/dh_004_1947_03_03_0040}}</ref> More importantly, Rhee spoke fluent English, whereas none of his rivals did, and therefore he was the Korean politician most trusted and favored by the [[United States Army Military Government in Korea|American occupation government]]. The British diplomat [[Roger Makins, 1st Baron Sherfield|Roger Makins]] later recalled, "the American propensity to go for a man rather than a movement — [[Henri Giraud|Giraud]] among the French in 1942, [[Chiang Kai-shek]] in China. Americans have always liked the idea of dealing with a foreign leader who can be identified as 'their man'. They are much less comfortable with movements." Makins further added the same was the case with Rhee, as very few Americans were fluent in Korean in the 1940s or knew much about Korea, and it was simply far easier for the American occupation government to deal with Rhee than to try to understand Korea. Rhee was "acerbic, prickly, uncompromising" and was regarded by the US State Department, which long had dealings with him as "a dangerous mischief-maker", but the American General [[John R. Hodge]] decided that Rhee was the best man for the Americans{{Citation needed|date=April 2025}} to back because of his fluent English and his ability to talk with authority to American officers about American subjects. Once it became clear from October 1945 onward that Rhee was the Korean politician most favored by the Koreans,<ref>{{citation  |title=Who is the best leader? (November 1945) |date=1995 |publisher=[[JoongAng Ilbo]]|url=https://www.joongang.co.kr/article/3040890}}</ref><ref>{{citation  |title=Two Types of Korean Nationalism: Syngman Rhee and Kim Ku|date=2010 |publisher=[[The Chosun Ilbo]]|url=http://monthly.chosun.com/client/news/viw.asp?nNewsNumb=201011100056}}</ref> other conservative leaders fell in behind him.

[[File:Kim and rhee meeting with Hodge.webp|thumb|Syngman Rhee and Kim Ku, leaders of the anti-trusteeship movement, meet with General Hodge to discuss the trusteeship.]]
The U.S. government, wary of anti-communist figures like Syngman Rhee and [[Kim Ku]], supported moderates such as [[Kim Kyu-sik]] and [[Lyuh Woon-hyung]].<ref>{{citation |last1=Kim |first1=Jong-sung |title=After a petty quarrel with an American, the weapon Syngman Rhee pulled out: the conflict and cooperation between Rhee and Hodge. |date=2020 |publisher=[[OhmyNews]]|url=https://www.ohmynews.com/NWS_Web/Series/series_premium_pg.aspx?CNTN_CD=A0002685010}}</ref>{{Unreliable source?|reason=See reliable sources list on [[WP:KO/RS]]|date=May 2025}}<ref>{{citation |last1=Jung |first1=Yong-wook |title=Hodge and Rhee had a heated argument over issues such as left-right cooperation.|date=2019 |publisher=[[The Hankyoreh]]|url=https://www.hani.co.kr/arti/culture/religion/906092.html#cb}}</ref> Syngman Rhee led the anti-trusteeship movement against both the U.S. and the Soviet Union, leading to conflict with the [[United States Army Military Government in Korea|U.S. military government]].<ref>{{citation |last1=Park |first1=Myung-soo |title=The Second Anti-trusteeship Campaign and Korean Political Landscapes in Early 1947 |journal=kci |date=2017 |volume=74 |pages=65–93 |publisher=[[Korea Citation Index]] |url=https://www.kci.go.kr/kciportal/ci/sereArticleSearch/ciSereArtiView.kci?sereArticleSearchBean.artiId=ART002297403}}</ref> When the first US–Soviet Cooperation Committee meeting was concluded without a result, he began to argue in June 1946 that the government of Korea must be established as an independent entity.<ref name="EncyKorea" /> In the same month, he created a plan based on this idea<ref name="Doopedia" /> and moved to Washington, DC, from December 1946 to April 1947 to lobby support for the plan. During the visit, [[Harry S. Truman]]'s policies of [[Containment]] and the [[Truman Doctrine]], which was announced in March 1947, enforced Rhee's anti-communist ideas.<ref name="EncyKorea" />

In November 1947, the [[United Nations General Assembly]] recognized Korea's independence and established the [[United Nations Temporary Commission on Korea]] (UNTCOK) through Resolution 112.<ref>{{cite wikisource |title=United Nations General Assembly Resolution 112}}</ref><ref name="CMP">{{cite web |url=http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/od-bdo/di-ri-eng.asp?IntlOpId=266&CdnOpId=314 |title=Details/Information for Canadian Forces (CF) Operation United Nations Commission on Korea |publisher=Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces |date=28 November 2008 |access-date=8 April 2014 |archive-date=4 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210304001116/http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/od-bdo/di-ri-eng.asp?IntlOpId=266&CdnOpId=314 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In May 1948, the [[1948 South Korean Constitutional Assembly election|South Korean Constitutional Assembly election]] was held under the oversight of the UNTCOK.<ref name="EncyKorea" /> He was elected without competition to serve in the South Korean Constitutional Assembly ({{Korean|labels=no |hangul=대한민국 제헌국회 |hanja=大韓民國制憲國會}}) and was consequently selected to be Speaker of the Assembly. Rhee was highly influential in creating the policy stating that the [[president of South Korea]] had to be elected by the National Assembly.<ref name="Doopedia" /> The 1948 [[Constitution of the Republic of Korea]] was adopted on 17 July 1948.<ref name="UCA">{{cite web |url=http://uca.edu/politicalscience/dadm-project/asiapacific-region/south-korea-1948-present/ |title=South Korea (1948–present) |publisher=[[University of Central Arkansas]] |work=Dynamic Analysis of Dispute Management Project |access-date=8 April 2014}}</ref>

[[File:Korea Dignitaries.jpg|thumb|Rhee with [[President of the Republic of China]] [[Chiang Kai-shek]] in 1949]]
On 20 July 1948, Rhee was elected president of the Republic of Korea<ref name="CNNfyi" /><ref name="Cold War Files" /><ref name="UCA" /> in the [[1948 South Korean presidential election]] with 92.3% of the vote; the second candidate, [[Kim Ku]], received 6.7% of the vote.<ref name="FES">{{Cite book |last=Croissant |first=Aurel |author-link=Aurel S. Croissant |title=Electoral politics in Southeast & East Asia |place=Singapore |publisher=Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung |series=370 |volume=VI |year=2002 |chapter=Electoral Politics in South Korea |chapter-url=http://library.fes.de/pdf-files/iez/01361008.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090902073621/http://library.fes.de/pdf-files/iez/01361008.pdf |archive-date=2 September 2009 |url-status=live |pages=234–237 |url=http://library.fes.de/fulltext/iez/01361inf.htm |isbn =978-981-04-6020-4 |access-date=8 April 2014}}</ref> On 15 August the Republic of Korea was formally established in the south,<ref name="UCA" /> and Rhee was [[inaugurated]] as its first president.<ref name="Doopedia" /><ref name="EncyKorea" /> The next month, on 9 September, the north also proclaimed statehood as the [[North Korea|Democratic People's Republic of Korea]]. Rhee's relations with the ''[[chinilpa]]'' Korean elites who had collaborated with the Japanese were, in the words of the South Korean historian Kyung Moon Hwang, often "contentious", but in the end an understanding was reached in which, in exchange for their support, Rhee would not purge the elites.<ref>Kyung Moon Hwang ''A History of Korea'' Palgrave Macmillan, 2010 page 204.</ref> In particular, the Koreans who had served in the colonial-era National Police, whom the Americans had retained after August 1945, were promised by Rhee that their jobs would not be threatened by him. Upon independence in 1948, 53% of South Korean police officers were men who had served in the National Police during the Japanese occupation.<ref>Hastings (1988), p. 38</ref>

=== Cabinet ===
{{Main|Cabinet of Rhee Syng-man}}

=== Political repression ===
[[File:Prisoners on ground before execution,Taejon, South Korea.jpg|thumb|Prisoners lie on the ground before execution by South Korean troops near Daejon, South Korea, July 1950. Photo by US Army Maj. Abbott.<ref name="apphoto">{{cite news |url= http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/jul/10/korea-bloodbath-probe-ends-us-escapes-much-blame/ |title=Korea bloodbath probe ends; US escapes much blame |agency=[[Associated Press]] |work=San Diego Union Tribune |author=Charles J. Hanley & Hyung-Jin Kim | date =July 10, 2010 |access-date=May 23, 2011}}</ref>]]
[[File:South Korean soldiers walk among dead political prisoners, Taejon, South Korea.jpg|thumb|South Korean soldiers walk among bodies of South Korean political prisoners shot near Daejon, South Korea, July 1950. Photo by US Army Major Abbott.<ref name="apphoto" />]]
Soon after taking office, Rhee enacted laws that severely curtailed political dissent. There was much controversy between Rhee and his leftist opponents. Allegedly, many of the leftist opponents were arrested and in some cases killed. The most controversial issue has been Kim Ku's assassination. On 26 June 1949, Kim Ku was assassinated by [[Ahn Doo-hee]], who confessed that he had been acting on the orders of [[Kim Chang-ryong]]. Ahn Doo-hee was described by the British historian Max Hastings as one of Rhee's "creatures".<ref>Hastings (1988), p. 42</ref> It soon became apparent that Rhee's style of government was rigidly authoritarian.<ref name="Tirman, John 2011 93–95">{{cite book|author=Tirman, John|title=The Deaths of Others: The Fate of Civilians in America's Wars|publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-19-538121-4 |pages=93–95 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2bC5Bsc1NEQC&pg=PA93}}</ref> He allowed the internal security force (headed by his right-hand man, Kim Chang-ryong) to detain and torture suspected communists and North Korean agents. His government also oversaw several massacres, including the suppression of the [[Jeju uprising]] on [[Jeju Island]], of which South Korea's Truth Commission reported 14,373 victims, 86% at the hands of the security forces and 13.9% at the hands of communist rebels,<ref name="jeju43">{{cite web|year = 2008|url = http://www.jeju43.go.kr/english/sub05.html|title = The National Committee for Investigation of the Truth about the Jeju April 3 Incident|access-date = 15 December 2008|url-status = dead|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090224221736/http://www.jeju43.go.kr/english/sub05.html|archive-date = 24 February 2009|df = mdy-all}}</ref> and the [[Mungyeong Massacre]].

By early 1950, Rhee had about 30,000 alleged communists in his jails, and had about 300,000 suspected sympathizers enrolled in an official "re-education" movement called the [[Bodo League]]. When the North Korean army attacked in June, retreating [[South Korean Army|South Korean forces]] executed the prisoners, along with several tens of thousands of Bodo League members.<ref name="smh.com.au">{{cite web|url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/south-korea-owns-up-to-brutal-past/2008/11/14/1226318928410.html|title=South Korea owns up to brutal past – World – smh.com.au|website=www.smh.com.au|date=15 November 2008}}</ref>

=== Korean War ===
{{Main|Korean War}}

Both Rhee and [[Kim Il Sung]] wanted to unite the Korean peninsula under their respective governments, but the United States refused to give South Korea any heavy weapons, to ensure that its military could only be used for preserving internal order and self-defense.<ref name="Hastings, Max page 45">Hastings (1988), p.45</ref> By contrast, [[Pyongyang]] was well equipped with Soviet aircraft, vehicles and tanks. According to John Merrill, "the war was preceded by a major insurgency in the South and serious clashes along the thirty-eighth parallel," and 100,000 people died in "political disturbances, guerrilla warfare, and border clashes".<ref>Merrill, John, ''Korea: The Peninsular Origins of the War'' (University of Delaware Press, 1989), p181.</ref>

At the outbreak of war on 25 June 1950, North Korean troops launched a full-scale invasion of South Korea. All South Korean resistance at the [[38th parallel north|38th parallel]] was overwhelmed by the North Korean offensive within a few hours.  By 26 June, it was apparent that the [[Korean People's Army]] (KPA) would occupy Seoul. Rhee stated, "Every Cabinet member, including myself, will protect the government."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2017/04/356_226873.html|title=Ten biggest lies in modern Korean history|date=3 April 2017|newspaper=[[The Korea Times]]}}</ref> At midnight on 28 June, the South Korean military destroyed the Han Bridge, preventing thousands of citizens from fleeing. On 28 June, North Korean soldiers occupied Seoul.

During the North Korean occupation of Seoul, Rhee established a temporary government in [[Busan]] and created a defensive perimeter along the Naktong Bulge. A series of battles ensued, which would later be known collectively as the [[Battle of Naktong Bulge]]. After the [[Battle of Inchon]] in September 1950, the North Korean military was routed, and the [[United Nations Command]] (UNC) and South Korean forces not only liberated all of South Korea, but overran much of North Korea. In the areas of North Korea taken by the UNC forces, elections were supposed to be administered by the United Nations but instead were taken over and administered by the South Koreans. Rhee insisted on ''Bukjin Tongil'' – ending war by conquering North Korea, but after the Chinese entered the war in November 1950, the UNC forces were thrown into retreat.<ref name="Ashgate Publishing, Ltd"/> During this period of crisis, Rhee ordered the [[December massacres]] of 1950. Rhee was absolutely committed to reunifying Korea under his leadership and strongly supported MacArthur's call for going all-out against China, even at the risk of provoking a nuclear war with the Soviet Union.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Koenig|first=Louis William|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=x4q4JaQZWUIC&q=%22Rhee+was+told+repeatedly%22|title=The Chief Executive|date=1968|publisher=Harcourt, Brace & World|pages=228|language=en}}</ref>

Hastings notes that, during the war, Rhee's official salary was equal to [[United States dollar|$]]37.50 per month. Both at the time and since, there has been much speculation about precisely how Rhee managed to live on this amount. The entire Rhee regime was notorious for its corruption, with everyone in the government from the President downwards stealing as much they possibly could from both the public purse and from United States aid. The Rhee regime engaged in the "worst excesses of corruption", with South Korean soldiers going unpaid for months as their officers embezzled their pay, equipment provided by the United States being sold on the black market, and the size of the army being bloated by hundreds of thousands of "ghost soldiers" who only existed on paper, allowing their officers to steal pay that would have been due had these soldiers actually existed. The problems with low morale experienced by the army were largely due to the corruption of the Rhee regime. The worst scandal during the war—indeed of the entire Rhee government—was the [[National Defense Corps Incident]]. Rhee created the National Defense Corps in December 1950, intended to be a paramilitary militia, comprising men not in the military or police who were drafted into the corps for internal security duties. In the months that followed, tens of thousands of National Defense Corps men either starved or froze to death in their unheated barracks, as the men lacked winter uniforms and food. Even Rhee could not ignore the deaths of so many and ordered an investigation. It was revealed that the commander of the National Defense Corps, General Kim Yun Gun, had stolen millions of American dollars that were intended to heat the barracks and feed and clothe the men. Kim and five other officers were publicly shot at [[Daegu]] on 12 August 1951, following their convictions for corruption.<ref name="Hastings, Max page 236">Hastings (1988), p. 235-240</ref>

In the spring of 1951, Rhee—who was upset about MacArthur's dismissal as UNC commander by President Truman—lashed out in a press interview against Britain, whom he blamed for MacArthur's sacking.<ref name="Hastings, Max page 235">Hastings (1988), p. 235</ref> Rhee declared, "The British troops have outlived their welcome in my country." Shortly after, Rhee told an Australian diplomat about the Australian troops fighting for his country, "They are not wanted here any longer. Tell that to your government. The Australian, Canadian, New Zealand and British troops all represent a government which is now sabotaging the brave American effort to liberate fully and unify my unhappy nation."<ref name="Hastings, Max page 235"/>

During the Korean War armistice negotiations, one of the most contentious issues was the repatriation of prisoners of war (POWs). The UNC advocated for the principle of voluntary repatriation, allowing POWs to choose whether to return to their home countries. In contrast, the communist side insisted on mandatory repatriation, demanding that all POWs be returned regardless of their preferences. This disagreement prolonged the negotiations, and an agreement was only reached on June 8, 1953. However, Rhee strongly opposed the armistice, fearing it would leave South Korea vulnerable to future aggression and believing it failed to ensure the country's long-term security. On June 18, 1953, Rhee unilaterally ordered the release of over 27,000 anti-communist POWs held in camps across South Korea, including those in Busan, Masan, and Daegu. This action shocked the United States, the United Nations, and the communist side, as it was perceived as a direct challenge to the ongoing armistice talks. The release also led to casualties, with dozens of POWs reportedly killed or injured during the process. Rhee's decision to release the POWs is interpreted as serving multiple purposes. Domestically, it was framed as a gesture to grant freedom to anti-communist prisoners who refused to return to their communist home countries. Internationally, it was a bold political maneuver to assert South Korea's agency in the armistice process and to pressure the United States into committing to South Korea's defense. Rhee was deeply dissatisfied with the armistice negotiations being conducted without active participation from the South Korean government. His actions aimed to ensure South Korea's security through the signing of the Korea-U.S. Mutual Defense Treaty. Although the unilateral release of POWs temporarily disrupted the armistice talks, it ultimately strengthened South Korea's position in post-war negotiations.<ref name="ArchivesKorea">
National Archives of Korea. "반공포로 석방 사건." Accessed January 13, 2025. 
[https://www.archives.go.kr/next/newsearch/listSubjectDescription.do?id=002717&pageFlag=&sitePage= National Archives of Korea]
</ref><ref name="EncyKoreaAntiCommunistPOWs">"반공포로 석방 사건" (Release of Anti-Communist POWs), EncyKorea, The Academy of Korean Studies. Retrieved from [https://encykorea.aks.ac.kr/Article/E0061616](https://encykorea.aks.ac.kr/Article/E0061616)</ref>

On July 27, 1953, the Korean War, often referred to as "one of the 20th century's most vicious and frustrating wars," ended without a clear victor. The [[Korean Armistice Agreement]] was signed by military commanders representing China, North Korea, and the United Nations Command (UNC), led by the United States. However, the Republic of Korea (ROK), under Rhee's leadership, refused to sign the agreement. His refusal to endorse the armistice eventually led to the signing of the [[Mutual Defense Treaty (United States–South Korea)|Korea-U.S. Mutual Defense Treaty]] in October 1953, which guaranteed U.S. military support for South Korea and cemented its role as a key ally in East Asia during the Cold War.<ref>James E. Dillard. [https://web.archive.org/web/20150221085414/http://www.koreanwar60.com/biographies-syngman-rhee "Biographies: Syngman Rhee"]. The Department of Defense 60th Anniversary of Korean War Commemoration Committee. Retrieved on 28 September 2016.</ref><ref name=bbc2015>[https://www.bbc.com/news/10165796 "The Korean War armistice"]. BBC News. 5 March 2015. Retrieved on 28 September 2016.</ref><ref name="NationalArchives">"Armistice Agreement for the Restoration of the South Korean State." National Archives. Accessed January 13, 2025. [https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/armistice-agreement-restoration-south-korean-state](https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/armistice-agreement-restoration-south-korean-state).</ref><ref name="DefenseGov">"Long Diplomatic Wrangling Finally Led to Korean Armistice 70 Years Ago." U.S. Department of Defense. Accessed January 13, 2025. [https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/3423473/long-diplomatic-wrangling-finally-led-to-korean-armistice-70-years-ago/](https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/3423473/long-diplomatic-wrangling-finally-led-to-korean-armistice-70-years-ago/).</ref><ref name="WilsonCenter">"Korean War Armistice." Wilson Center Digital Archive. Accessed January 13, 2025. [https://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org/topics/korean-war-armistice](https://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org/topics/korean-war-armistice).</ref><ref name="Britannica">"Armistice and Aid." Britannica. Accessed January 13, 2025. [https://www.britannica.com/place/Korea/Armistice-and-aid](https://www.britannica.com/place/Korea/Armistice-and-aid).</ref>

<gallery widths="200px" heights="200px">
File:Syngman Rhee.jpg|Rhee awarding a medal to [[US Navy]] [[Rear Admiral]] [[Ralph A. Ofstie]] during the [[Korean War]] in 1952
File:Dr. Syngman Rhee at Han River Bridge in Seoul.jpg|Rhee and his wife posing with [[United States Army Corps of Engineers|Army Corps of Engineers]] personnel in 1950 at the [[Hangang Bridge|Han River Bridge]]
File:Syngman Rhee-TIME-1953.jpg|Rhee on ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine cover, 1953|alt=
</gallery>

=== Re-election ===
Because of widespread discontent with Rhee's corruption and political repression, it was considered unlikely that Rhee would be re-elected by the [[National Assembly (South Korea)|National Assembly]]. To circumvent this, Rhee attempted to amend the constitution to allow him to hold elections for the presidency by direct popular vote. When the Assembly rejected this amendment, Rhee ordered a mass arrest of opposition politicians and then passed the desired amendment in July 1952. During the [[1952 South Korean presidential election|following presidential election]], he received 74% of the vote.<ref>{{cite book|author=Buzo, Adrian|title=The making of modern Korea|publisher=Taylor & Francis|year=2007|isbn=978-0-415-41482-1|page=79|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KAbbtKCjHfUC&pg=PA79}}</ref>

=== Post-war economic challenges ===
At the time of its creation in 1948, South Korea was among the poorest countries in the world. Twelve years later, in 1960, it held this position with a per capita income similar to that of [[Haiti]]. Although South Korea was predominantly an agricultural society that had experienced some industrialization during the Japanese colonial rule from 1910 to 1945, mainly in the northern provinces, it faced significant challenges.<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last=Seth |first=Michael J. |date=19 December 2017 |title=South Korea's Economic Development, 1948–1996 |url=https://oxfordre.com/asianhistory/display/10.1093/acrefore/9780190277727.001.0001/acrefore-9780190277727-e-271 |journal=Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Asian History|doi=10.1093/acrefore/9780190277727.013.271 |isbn=978-0-19-027772-7 |url-access=subscription }}</ref>

The [[division of Korea]] in 1945 by the [[Soviet Union]] and the United States resulted in the creation of two states: the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) in the north and the Republic of Korea in the south. The DPRK inherited most of the industry, mining, and more than 80% of electricity generation. In contrast, the ROK owned the majority of productive agricultural areas, but these were barely enough to feed a densely populated and rapidly growing population.<ref name=":2" />

The period after the war was marked by a very slow recovery, despite South Korea being one of the largest per capita recipients of [[Aid|foreign aid]].<ref name=":2" /> The lack of central planning, minimal investment in infrastructure, poor use of aid funds, government corruption, political instability, and the threat of renewed war with the North made the country very unattractive to both domestic and foreign investors. Additionally, the fear of recreating a [[Colonialism|colonial]] dependence on Japan prevented Seoul from opening the country to trade and investment with its prosperous neighbor.<ref name=":2" />

=== Resignation and exile ===
After the war ended in July 1953, South Korea struggled to rebuild following nationwide devastation. The country remained at a [[Third World]] level of development and was heavily reliant on US aid.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Snyder|first=Scott A.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xmhADwAAQBAJ&pg=PT33|title=South Korea at the Crossroads: Autonomy and Alliance in an Era of Rival Powers|date=2 January 2018|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=978-0-231-54618-8|pages=33|language=en}}</ref> Rhee was easily re-elected for what should have been the final time [[1956 South Korean presidential election|in 1956]], since the 1948 constitution limited the president to two consecutive terms. However, soon after being sworn in, he had the legislature amend the constitution to allow the incumbent president to run for an unlimited number of terms, despite protests from the opposition.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Kil|first1=Soong Hoom|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZjVmngFyUTcC&pg=PA143|title=Understanding Korean Politics: An Introduction|last2=Moon|first2=Chung-in|date=1 March 2010|publisher=SUNY Press|isbn=978-0-7914-9101-0|pages=143|language=en}}</ref>

[[March 1960 South Korean presidential election|In March 1960]], the 84-year-old Rhee won his fourth term in office as president. His victory was assured with 100% of the vote after the main opposition candidate, [[Cho Byeong-ok]], died shortly before the 15 March elections.<ref name="Han">Han, S-J. (1974) ''The Failure of Democracy in South Korea.'' University of California Press, p. 28–29.</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Lentz|first=Harris M.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D6HKAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA483|title=Heads of States and Governments Since 1945|date=4 February 2014|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-134-26490-2|language=en}}</ref>

Rhee wanted his protégé, [[Lee Ki-poong]], elected as Vice President—a separate office under Korean law at that time. When Lee, who was running against [[Chang Myon]] (the ambassador to the United States during the Korean War, a member from the opposition Democratic Party) won the vote with a wide margin, the opposition Democratic Party claimed the election was [[Electoral fraud|rigged]]. This triggered anger among segments of the Korean populace on 19 April. When police shot demonstrators in [[Masan]], the student-led [[April Revolution]] forced Rhee to resign on 26 April.<ref name="Han" />

Following his resignation, he spent a month at the [[Ihwajang|Ihwajang House]] and departed for exile in Hawaii by plane on 29 May.<ref>{{citation |last1=Lee |first1=dong-woo |title=As his longing for his homeland deepened, his beloved dog 'Happy' stayed by his side.|date=2025 |publisher=[[The Financial News]]|url=https://www.fnnews.com/news/202501071858287652#_PA}}</ref><ref>{{citation |last1=Kim |first1=mi-roo |title=Syngman Rhee, the first president of South Korea, never returned to his homeland and died in solitude in Hawaii|date=2023 |publisher=(Money today, 머니 투데이)|url=https://news.mt.co.kr/mtview.php?no=2023071810092347336}}</ref> The former president, his wife, and their adopted son subsequently lived in exile in Honolulu, Hawaii.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=MT19650719.2.4&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1|title = Madera Tribune 19 July 1965 — California Digital Newspaper Collection}}</ref>