Kim Young Sam

Kim Young Sam, 1927–, South Korean political leader, b. Gyeongsang prov. He was first elected to the National Assembly in 1954 and served nine terms. A long-time political dissident and opponent of military rule, he was banned from politics from 1980 to 1985 and was twice subjected to house arrest. Kim was an unsuccessful presidential candidate in 1987, but after three decades in opposition he shrewdly merged his party with the ruling party in 1990 to form the Democratic Liberal party (now the New Korea party). In 1993 he became the first nonmilitary president in more than 30 years, and initiated political and economic reforms, but in 1998, amid corruption scandals and public loss of confidence, he was succeeded by his rival Kim Dae Jung.

---

Kim Young Sam

(born Dec. 20, 1927, Koje Island [near Pusan], Korea) South Korean moderate opposition leader who served as president (1993–98) after his party merged with the ruling party. First elected to South Korea's National Assembly in 1954, he served there until his expulsion in 1979 by Pres. Park Chung Hee, which touched off riots and demonstrations that preceded Park's assassination. After the military takeover by Gen. Chun Doo Hwan in 1980, Kim was put under house arrest until 1983. In 1990 he merged his party with the ruling Democratic Justice Party, a move that helped him win the presidency in 1992. He enacted reforms to end political corruption, and his term was one of rising prosperity for Korea until 1997, when Korea became caught up in an Asian financial crisis.