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South Korea The New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party (NDP), the principal opposition
party, also had its share of problems. Kim Young Sam was elected
as NDP leader for three years in 1979, so his position would have
been secure, had not the Ch'oe government restored Kim Dae Jung's
civil rights. Even though Kim Dae Jung, the NDP presidential
candidate in 1971, had been out of the political arena for more
than seven years, he commanded a large political following.
Because the NDP was expected to win the forthcoming election by a
wide margin, the presidency of the republic was at stake in the
negotiations for Kim Dae Jung's reinstatement in the party. In
the end, negotiations broke off, and on April 7, 1980, Kim Dae
Jung declared that he would no longer seek to rejoin the NDP.
Although Kim Young Sam and his supporters had waged a fierce
political struggle against President Park toward the end of his
rule, many of those in leadership positions in the NDP had tended
to be accommodating to the Park regime. Kim Dae Jung and his
followers, on the other hand, represented the active dissident
students, intellectuals, and progressive Christians who had
engaged in direct struggle against the Park regime. The chaeya
seryok (literally, forces in the field, but the term also
means an opposing political force) were more radical in
orientation. Kim Dae Jung and his group wished to expedite the
process of restoring democracy, even if it meant forcing the
hands of Ch'oe and his supporters.
Data as of June 1990
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