단상斷想

The formation of far-right forces after liberation and the fostering of right-wing groups during the US military administration period: From 1945 to August 15, 1948, the United States Army Military Government in Korea, which militarily ruled South Korea, actively fostered right-wing groups to counter leftist forces. In opposition to the leftist-leaning Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, which had existed since the Japanese colonial period, the National Youth Federation for the Promotion of Korean Independence was formed in 1945, and this federation was transformed into the National Youth Federation for the Promotion of Korean Independence (대한노총) in 1946 under the protection of the US Military Government. This group aimed for anti-communism and labor-management cooperation with Syngman Rhee and Kim Gu as advisors. Immediately after the establishment of the government in 1948, President Syngman Rhee himself became the president of 대한노총 and transformed 대한노총 into the Federation of Korean Trade Unions that year.

On November 30, 1946, youth groups who defected from North Korea established the Northwest Youth Association. The Northwest Youth Association functioned as the subject of far-right violence, such as massacring Jeju Island residents during the Jeju April 3 Uprising in 1948, thereby worsening the situation. A significant number of Northwest Youth Association members were incorporated into the police and military by the US military government and right-wing leaders, and were integrated into the Korean Youth Association in December 1948. The remaining members were dissolved on October 18, 1949, when their organization registration was cancelled. It is noteworthy that Ahn Doo-hee, an executive member of the Northwest Youth Association's Reconstruction Committee at the time, assassinated Baekbeom Kim Gu in June 1949. The Central Association of Displaced People, a successor to the Northwest Youth Association, adhered to a far-right stance in historical interpretation, such as eliciting the Ministry of National Defense's official position that the Yeosu-Suncheon Rebellion and the Jeju April 3 Incident were 'communist rioting'.

The Syngman Rhee regime and the beginning of the Anti-Communist League created the heyday of authoritarian regimes and government-sponsored organizations. The starting point of the Korea Freedom Federation is the Asian People's Anti-Communist League, which was organized in 1954 under the leadership of then-President Syngman Rhee and Republic of China President Chiang Kai-shek. The Korean branch of this league is the Korean Asian People's Anti-Communist League, which was established in 1956, and this Korean branch was officially launched as the Korea Anti-Communist League with the enactment of the 'Korea Anti-Communist League Act' in 1963. The Anti-Communist League faced a crisis of dissolution as it was pointed out as an organization on the outskirts of the Liberal Party after the April 19 Revolution, but after the launch of the Park Chung-hee regime, it developed into a nationwide organization with branches in cities, counties, and districts with the full support of the government.

After that, the Park Chung-hee regime implemented the Saemaul Undong nationwide from 1969, and expanded it to cities and factories in 1975. In 1973, the Saemaul Affairs Office was established in the Ministry of Home Affairs by presidential decree, and the Saemaul Affairs Office was established in the Presidential Secretariat. In 1979, at the end of the Park Chung-hee regime, government subsidies for the Saemaul Undong amounted to 425.2 billion won, and subsidies from private organizations amounted to 203.2 billion won. In addition, the Park Chung-hee regime actively utilized the Korean Veterans Association, which was founded in 1952. The 'Republic of Korea Veterans Association Act' in 1961 allowed the Korean Veterans Association to become a corporation and receive government subsidies. When the Park Chung-hee regime promoted the third constitutional amendment in 1969, the Korean Veterans Association was used as a political tool of the regime, issuing a statement supporting the constitutional amendment in the name of '2.5 million veterans' despite the regulations prohibiting political intervention.

The Chun Doo-hwan's new military forces, which emerged after Park Chung-hee's death, launched the National Security Emergency Countermeasures Committee (Kukbo-wi), an extra-constitutional organization, after the December 12, 1979 coup, and the Kukbo-wi created the Social Purification Committee. The Social Purification Committee arrested or ousted about 5,000 public officials, including politicians, and forcibly admitted 38,000 people to the Samcheong Education Corps. In addition, 57,000 people were arrested under the pretext of eliminating social evils. The Social Purification Committee served as a social control mechanism for the Chun Doo-hwan regime until it was absorbed into the Ministry of Home Affairs in 1988, but was revived in April 1989 as a government-controlled organization called the Central Council for the Righteous Living Movement. The Central Council for the Righteous Living Movement was operated as a social control mechanism for the Roh Tae-woo regime, and was launched as an official government-controlled organization in 1992 under the Act on Fostering Organizations for the Righteous Living Movement. Immediately after Chun Doo-hwan took power, the Saemaul Undong Central Association became a statutory corporation under the 'Saemaul Undong Organization Promotion Act' in 1980, and President Chun Kyung-hwan's younger brother, Chun Kyung-hwan, was selected as the person in charge. After Roh Tae-woo's regime was launched, Chun Kyung-hwan was temporarily hit when he was arrested on suspicion of corruption, but on April 24, 1989, it changed its name to the Saemaul Undong Central Council and continues to this day.

Looking at the changes in government-sponsored organizations after democratization, in 1988, 163 lawmakers proposed a bill to abolish the Saemaul Undong Organization Promotion Act, and after that, in 1993 and 1996, bills to abolish these government-sponsored organizations were also proposed. The Kim Young-sam government established a plan to reorganize government-sponsored organizations as a result of an audit, but in 1996, a year before the presidential election, it provided billions of won to these three organizations. After the first change of government by the Kim Dae-jung administration, the 'Non-Profit Private Organization Support Act' was enacted in 1999 to support non-profit private organizations that carry out public interest projects. However, the Saemaul Undong Central Association, the Korea Freedom Federation, and the National Council for the Righteous Living Movement are receiving privileges and support that cannot be compared to other private organizations under separate special laws. In 1989, the Anti-Communist League Act was abolished and the name was changed to the Korea Freedom Federation under the 'Freedom Federation Act'. The Korea Freedom Federation also showed itself to be a 'reformist conservative' by issuing statements supporting and welcoming the June 15 inter-Korean summit.

The New Right, which emerged in earnest during the Roh Moo-hyun administration in the early to mid-2000s, rose as a new form of conservative political force. Starting with the 'Liberal Solidarity' in 2004, the 'New Right National Alliance' was founded in 2005, followed by the establishment of several organizations such as the 'Textbook Forum' (currently the Free Enterprise Institute) and the 'Korean Peninsula Advancement Foundation'. The New Right differentiated themselves from the existing reactionary conservatives and advocated for 'rational conservatism'. They went beyond the traditional anti-communist ideology and emphasized the free market economy and liberal democracy. In terms of historical perception, they advocated a 'liberal historical view' that positively evaluates the founding and economic development of the Republic of Korea.

The ideological characteristic of the New Right is its advocacy for industrialization forces, positively evaluating the economic development model of the Park Chung-hee regime, and interpreting developmental dictatorship as a process of 'selective modernization.' It embraces a neoliberal economic perspective and supports deregulation, privatization, and tax cuts. It takes a hard-line stance against North Korea and emphasizes the importance of the U.S.-ROK alliance. Furthermore, with the slogan '60 Years of the Republic of Korea's Founding,' it positively evaluates the founding of the nation by Syngman Rhee and the economic development of Park Chung-hee in a continuous line. Theoretically, the New Right attempted to differentiate itself from existing far-right forces, but in actual political actions, it showed a tendency to unite with existing far-right forces from the perspective of anti-North Korea, anti-progressive, and pro-Americanism. In particular, during the Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye administrations, it actively cooperated with government policies and strengthened ties with existing government-affiliated organizations.

The New Right expanded its political influence with the launch of the Lee Myung-bak government. It was deeply involved in controversies surrounding historical interpretation, such as the publication of the Kyohaksa textbook, dubbed the "New Right History Textbook," and the promotion of "state-authored textbooks," and had a significant impact on government policies. In the 2008 candlelight vigils against the import of US beef and the 2016-2017 candlelight vigils against the Park Geun-hye-Choi Soon-sil government scandal, they led the 'Taegukgi rallies' against them and were active in mobilizing the far-right public. Since the mid-2010s, amid deepening social polarization and intergenerational conflict, they have shown connections with far-right youth groups centered around internet communities such as 'Ilbe' (Ilgan Best Storage). On September 28, 2014, a group calling itself the Reconstruction Committee of the Northwest Youth Association stormed the Sewolho memorial altar to demolish it, and a few days later, Bae Seong-gwan, chairman of the Reconstruction Committee, posted an article on the 'Ilbe' site claiming that 'Ahn Doo-hee's assassination of Kim Gu was a righteous act.' After the impeachment of the Park Geun-hye government, the New Right forces temporarily shrank, but they combined with the far-right mass movement called the 'Taegukgi Unit' and transformed into a new form of far-right political force. They are expanding their influence by utilizing new media platforms such as SNS and YouTube.

As ideological polarization intensifies in Korean society under the Moon Jae-in and Yoon Suk-yeol governments, the far-right, including the New Right, is expanding its agenda with issues such as anti-China sentiment, anti-feminism, and opposition to immigration, seeking new political momentum. Existing government-affiliated organizations are experiencing financial difficulties while relying on government subsidies. According to a 2019 report, the Korean Veterans Association has ‘more than 600 billion won in debt and suffered a loss of 95 billion won in 2017.’ Since liberation, far-rightism in Korean society began with the support of the US military government and was strengthened as a social control mechanism of the authoritarian regime. Even after democratization, it has maintained its influence in the form of government-affiliated organizations, and in the 2000s, it underwent a new ideological transformation with the emergence of the New Right. This historical development of far-rightism has played an important role in shaping the ideological landscape and political culture of Korean society, and continues to have a significant impact on ideological conflicts and polarization in Korean society today.