Cho Bong-am (Korean:조봉암;Hanja:曺奉岩, 25 September 1898 – 31 July 1959) was a Korean socialist independence activist and politician, who ran for president in the South Korean presidential election in 1956. He was a founding member of the Communist Party of Korea (조선공산당;朝鮮共産黨) and the Progressive Party (진보당;進步黨), a moderate socialist democratic party in South Korea which was one of the country's major political forces.[1]
In 1952, Cho ran for the presidency for the first time against sitting president Rhee, and Yi Si-yeong. He received only 0.8 million votes out of 5.2 million.
The left-liberal Progressive Party was founded in the aftermath of the Korean War under Cho's leadership. Cho and his followers were able to build a wide coalition with the country's leftist forces. Cho also successfully created coalitions with right-wing forces opposed to Syngman Rhee's dictatorship. The party's founding and moderate success in Korea's hostile political environment is considered a large result of Bong-am's personal charisma. The Progressive Party advocated peaceful unification with North Korea, through strengthening the country's democratic forces and winning in a unified Korean election. Cho called for both anti-communist and anti-authoritarian politics, as well as advocating for social welfare policies for the peasants and urban poor.
In the 1956 election, Cho ran against Rhee, the anti-communist strongman president. Cho lost with 30% of the vote, which exceeded expectations. Following the election, the Progressive Party broke apart due to factionalism.[citation needed]
Three years after the election, Cho was charged with espionage and receiving funds from North Korea. His first trial resulted in an acquittal but he was convicted in a second trial and was executed on 31 July 1959.[4] His death sentence was posthumously overturned in 2011 by the South Korean Supreme Court.[5]
References
↑Kim, Yunjong (2016). The Failure of Socialism in South Korea: 1945-2007. New York: Routledge. p.54,84.
↑Han, Sungjoo (1974). The Failure of Democracy in South Korea. University of California Press. p.79.
↑Park, Sub (November 2009). "Cooperation between business associations and the government in the Korean cotton industry, 1950–70". Business History. 51 (6): 850. doi:10.1080/00076790903266851. S2CID154398645.
