UCLA Center for East Asian Studies
Korean President Kim Dae-jung Receives
the 2000 Nobel Peace PrizeOctober 13, 2000
Nobel Committee || Office of the Korean President || News Reports ||
Earlier Profiles || BibliographyNobel Prize Committee's Announcement
"In the course of South Korea's decades of authoritarian rule, despite repeated threats on his life and long periods in exile, Kim Dae Jung gradually emerged as his country's leading spokesman for democracy. His election in 1997 as the republic's president marked South Korea's definitive entry among the world's democracies. As president, Kim Dae Jung has sought to consolidate democratic government and to promote internal reconciliation within South Korea.
"With great moral strength, Kim Dae Jung has stood out in East Asia as a leading defender of universal human rights against attempts to limit the relevance of those rights in Asia. His commitment in favour of democracy in Burma and against repression in East Timor has been considerable.
"Through his "sunshine policy", Kim Dae Jung has attempted to overcome more than fifty years of war and hostility between North and South Korea. His visit to North Korea gave impetus to a process which has reduced tension between the two countries. There may now be hope that the cold war will also come to an end in Korea. Kim Dae Jung has worked for South Korea's reconciliation with other neighbouring countries, especially Japan." full press release
Office of the Korean President
10/13/00 "I believe it is an unparalleled honor. I am truly thankful. The honor is due to the encouragement of the people who have consistently supported me during my 40 years of struggle for democracy and human rights and my efforts for peace and reconciliation between South and North Korea. I would like to return this honor to the people." full statement
Associated Press (US)
10/13/00 "South Korean President Kim Dae-jung won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for efforts toward reconciliation with North Korea that have prompted hopes for peace on the Cold War's last frontier.
"The 76 -year-old president, who emerged as a symbol of pro-democracy struggle during 40 years as an opposition leader under authoritarian rule in the South, said he wanted to share the honor with his people.
"'I thank all the citizens who love democracy and human rights, who have supported these efforts with our people,' he was quoted as saying by presidential spokesman Park Joon-young. 'I will keep up my efforts for human rights, democracy and peace on the Korean peninsula, Asia and the world.'" full story (via Los Angeles Times)
BBC (UK)
10/13/00 "South Korean President Kim Dae-jung has won the Nobel Peace Prize, for his groundbreaking efforts to achieve reconciliation with North Korea."Mr Kim emerged as the leading favourite because the prize is often awarded to boost an ongoing process." full story
China Daily (China)
10/13/00 "... Kim, who is sometimes described as 'Asia's Mandela,' has paid a high price for his political principles.
"Under Korea's military rulers in the 1970s and 1980s he was was twice sentenced to death, repeatedly tortured, the victim of two assassination attempts, exiled twice and held under house arrest 55 times.
"But the first act of the perennial dissident after he was elected president in December 1997 was to pardon the former rulers who sentenced him to death when he was an opposition leader.
"'Only the truly magnanimous and strong are capable of forgiving and loving,'" he wrote in a letter to his son from prison death row in November, 1980." full story
CNN (US)
10/13/00 "The prize, to be handed over in Oslo on December 10, comprises a gold medal, a diploma and a check for nine million Swedish crowns ($908,300).
"Some observers have said it is premature to give the honour to Kim. Others feel North Korea could feel offended that the award has gone only to the South Korean leader.
"But that committee has given the prize to only one side on previous occasions and it has a record of rewarding fledgling peace processes -- even if there are dangers they will collapse." full story
The Korea Times (Korea)
10/13/00 "Kim became the first Korean to win the coveted prize after being nominated 14 times every year since 1985....
"He has been under house arrest 55 times, been in jail for six years and exiled twice.
"Furthermore, he has been a victim of both torture and attempted assassinations and twice been sentenced to death.
"During his whole life, Kim has devoted himself to promoting human rights, democracy, freedom and justice. He has never deviated from his commitment to the nation and love for the people." full story
10/13/00 "For Kim, prison was college. He recalled that it was in prison when he first d veloped a deep taste for and a broad understanding of the Oriental classics by Confucius and Mencius and the Korean indigenous form of neo-Confucianism 'practical learning' (Silhak). His command over English is also a reward of prison life, Kim said. Much of his intellectual mat ring and character-building was achieved while he was in prison for six years.
"'I abhor mistaken politics, but do not hate any individual,' Kim said in 1978, after three years of imprisonment due to his opposition to the dictatorship then. Kim has displayed his belief, as president, by choosing to forgive the former rulers who persecuted him and sentenced him to death when he belonged to the opposition. His policy of forgiveness is a visible expression of freedom from hatred and fear." full story
National Public Radio (US)
10/13/00 NPR's Eric Weiner reports from Tokyo on the award. (Free Real Audio Player required.)
Time.com (US)
10/13/00 Columnist Tony Karon wrote
"Kim Dae Jung not only persuaded North Korea’s notoriously recalcitrant leadership to engage in talks towards normalizing relations; he also managed to convince the United States — which had been far from convinced by his 'Sunshine Policy' — that a sea-change was possible in relations between the two Koreas. The fact that a North Korean leader made a first-ever visit to the White House this week, and that Secretary of State Madeleine Albright plans to visit Pyongyang later this year, would not have been possible without the South Korean leader’s efforts. Of course, the Nobel Committee has, in recent years, taken to giving joint awards to two leaders on opposite sides of an ongoing peace process. In the case of Kim Jong Il, however, the committee could not stretch its imagination far enough to lionize an unpredictable authoritarian with a dismal human-rights record. Besides, the reconciliation is occurring primarily because Kim Dae Jung, with Beijing’s help, managed to coax the North Korean leader out of his shell. Still, being the arch conciliator that he is, don’t be surprised if Kim Dae Jung makes some gesture towards sharing the award with his peace partner." full column
Voice of Russia (Russia)
10/13/00 [The prize] "points out how much Kim Dae Jong has done for democracy and human rights in East Asia, including his own country, South Korea."
Earlier Profiles and Speeches
Asia Society
6/8/98 President Kim spoke at a luncheon hosted by the Asia Society and Council on Foreign Relations.
"... we should be careful not to isolate North Korea from the international community. So in principle, I do not oppose the U.S. efforts to expand the scope of its relations with North Korea. However, I believe that we need to exercise caution so as to avoid the possibility of North Korea perceiving a gap in the positions between the Republic and the United States and using it to its advantage. That possibility alone is reason enough for our two countries to coordinate policies with each other ever more closely.
"Only when cooperation is maintained, will smooth dialogue between Seoul and Pyongyang be possible." full textBBC (UK)
6/13/00 Larry Jagan wrote
"Kim Dae-jung was elected in December 1997 after promising voters democratic reform, and campaigns to curb corruption and the political power of the country's industrial conglomerates, known as the chaebols.
"He said he would start meaningful talks with North Korea's leader Kim Jong-il - a pledge which he has now made good....
"Kim Dae-jung comes from South Korea's more backward Cholla region in the south-west of the country, near the city of Kwangju.
"This has been his long-time power base but his regional background is also seen by some as a major handicap." full story
CNN (US)
Carol Clark wrote:
"South Korean President Kim Dae-jung endured a run-in with a 14-ton truck, a kidnapping, repeated arrests, beatings, exile and a death sentence during his decades-long struggle as an opposition leader. After losing three election bids for president, he came back from retirement to finally win the office at age 72, pledging major democratic reforms. He is sometimes referred to as 'the Nelson Mandela of Asia.'" full story
The Newshour with Jim Lehrer (US)
Jim Lehrer interviewed President Kim in 1998 on the PBS news program.
LEHRER: Mr. President, welcome. You have suggested that the United States consider lifting sanctions against North Korea. Why? Opening the door to North Korea.
KIM: Well, that is very imperative to let North Korea open door to outside. As far as I know, there is two groups in the North, hardliners and the moderate. So moderate is insisting that North Korea should open door to outside. Otherwise there will be no hope for North Korea in the future, but at this stage hardliner is stronger than the moderate. So such a sanction gives a good excuse for hardliners to maintain present isolation. And also, as you see, when we take up the Soviet Union case, and the China case, and the Vietnam case, America has maintained a, you know, flexible policy, backed by a strong security posture. So such a flexible policy made those countries open door, and finally America succeeded. full interview
Office of the Korean President (Korea)
"[Kim Dae-jung's] turbulent political life dates back to a successful escape from prison where he had been incarcerated by North Korean Communists during the Korean War (1950-53). From the 1950s when Kim stepped into the political arena, he was persecuted ceaselessly by undemocratic regimes but won increasing public popularity. He experienced imprisonment, kidnapping from overseas, house arrest, exile and a death sentence. Despite all this adversity, he continued his struggle for a better life and democracy for the Korean people.
"During the presidential election in 1971, backers of the dictatorship tried to murder Kim and make it look like a traffic accident. After being kidnapped from a Tokyo hotel in 1973 by agents of the Korean CIA, he was almost drowned at sea. But prompt intervention by the United States and Japan saved his life. U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and the Japanese government expressed grave concern about Kim's safety, viewing the case as a matter of critical importance.
"In 1980, a court martial sentenced Kim to death on charges of treason. Amid a wave of international pressure, however, his sentence was commuted life imprisonment. He was subsequently released from prison on medical grounds and sent into exile in the United States. In the face of such political hardship and tribulation, Kim played a critical role in bolstering democracy in Korea.
"He became a symbol of "conscience in action" - an unwillingness to compromise in the struggle for democracy and human rights. In his fight against his enemies, he demonstrated that he is a man of courage and belief. His work for the common good was rewarded when he won the presidential election in 1997. Although he won by a small margin, his victory was a historic achievement for the Korean people who had suffered turmoil and hardship under successive authoritarian regimes for nearly half a century." full political profile
Select English-Language Bibliography
Goldstein, Norm. Kim Dae-Jung (World Leaders Past and Present). N.P.: Chelsea House Publishing, 1999. [intended for high school aged readers]
Kim Dae-jung. Building Peace & Democracy : Kim Dae Jung Philosophy & Dialogues.
---. Mass Participatory Economy : A Democratic Alternative for Korea. N.P.: University Press of America, 1985. Revised in 1996 as Mass Participatory Economy : Korea's Road to World Economic Power.
---. My Fight for Democracy in Korea : The Autobiography of Kim Dae Jung.
---. Prison Writings. Translated by Choi Sung-il ; foreword by David R. McCann. Berkeley : University of California Press, 1987.
Kim, Pyong-guk. Kim Dae-Jung. Seoul, Korea : Ilweolseogak, 1992.
Lee Hee-ho (Mrs. Kim Dae-jung) . My Love, My Country. Translated by T.C. Rhee. Los Angeles : Center for Multiethnic and Transnational Studies, University of Southern California, 1997.
Lee, Hee-ho (Mrs. Kim Dae-jung). Praying for Tomorrow : Letters to My Husband in Prison. Translated by Rhee Tong-chin ; edited by George Oakley Totten III. Revised ed. Los Angeles : USC Korea Project, University of Southern California, 2000.
The Society for Northeast Asian Peace Studies. The Kim Dae-Jung Government : The Sunshine Policy. Seoul, Korea : Millennium Books, 1999.
