Head of Single Party State Essays -- Essays Papers

Head of Single Party State â€Å"Syngman Rhee: Key South Korean Politician† 1875- 1965 A. Plan of Investigation The presence of Syngman Rhee’s regime in South Korea after World War 2 was essential for preventing South Korea (ROK) from becoming part of the Soviet Communist bloc. The validity of this statement shall be addressed and analyzed in great detail within this investigation. The primary sources chosen for this investigation shall consist of Top Secret US Documents which include an evaluation of Syngman Rhee and a memo from US Secretary of State to Rhee. They are attached in the Appendix (G). The secondary sources used are numerous and will be included in the bibliography. The main secondary source will be State Security and Regime Security : President Syngman Rhee and the Insecurity Dilemma in South Korea, 1953-60 book by Yong Pyo-Hong. B. Summary of Evidence The United States, Britain, and China had agreed that Korea would be allowed to become independent after the Allied victory, at the Cairo Conference of December 1943. The Soviet Union agreed to this principle in its declaration of war against Japan. On August 15, 1945, President Harry S Truman and Marshall Stalin agreed to divide Korean spheres of influence at the thirty-eighth parallel. Their foreign ministers met in Moscow on December 7, 1945 in order to create a 5 year â€Å"trusteeship† during which a joint United States-Soviet government would create a "provisional Korean democratic government." (1UpInfo, 2002) The trusteeship proposal was immediately opposed by the majority of Koreans (communists excluded), especially by the Korean right-wing politicians, led by Syngman Rhee’s Liberal Party , who used the discontent to form his base of support. Rhee ca... ...t 2003. <http://www.ahrchk.net/charter/mainfile.php/east/12/>. Eisenhower.com 13 Apr. 2000. â€Å"Assessment of Rhee† Oct 4, 2003. <http://www.dwightdeisenhower.com/koreanwar/Maj.%20Gen.%20Dean%27s%20assessment%20of%20Rhee.gif>. Eisenhower.com 13 Apr 2000. â€Å"Memo to Rhee† Oct 4, 2003. <http://www.dwightdeisenhower.com/koreanwar/Message%20from%20Dulles%20to%20Rhee,%20pg.%201.gif>. Hong, Pyon-Yow, State Security and Regime Security : President Syngman Rhee and the Insecurity Dilemma in South Korea, 1953-60, New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1999. Kim, Q.Y. Fall of Syngman Rhee. 1983. University of California. Oliver, Robert. Syngman Rhee: The Man Behind the Myth. 1973. Greenwood Pub. Group. †Rhee, Syngman." Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. 2003. Encyclopedia Britannica Premium Service. 26 Aug, 2003 <http://www.britannica.com/ebc/article?eu=402134>.