Uri Party
Encyclopedia
The Yeollin Uri Party (ko
: 열린우리당, en
: "Our Open Party"), generally abbreviated to Uri Party (ko: 우리당, en: "Our Party"), was the briefly ruling political party
in South Korea
(2004–2007) with a centrist political ideology. Chung Sye Kyun was the last leader of the party and twice served as its chairman.
in the Millennium Democratic Party chose to break ranks from other party members who showed lukewarm support for the administration. Some 42 out of 103 lawmakers of the Millennium Democratic Party joined the new party, and 5 lawmakers from the Grand National Party
also joined, seeking to complete political reforms.
As a result of the 2004 Parliamentary election
, Uri party achieved its first nationwide majority in the legislature by winning 152 of 299 seats.
The party came to international attention when their members physically blocked the speaker's chair in the National Assembly in a failed attempt to prevent the impeachment vote on President Roh on March 12, 2004. (The vote was subsequently overruled by South Korea's Constitutional Court on May 14, 2004.)
On August 19, 2004, the party suffered an embarrassing setback when party chairman Shin Ki Nam resigned following revelations by a national investigation that his father had worked for the Japanese military police during the Japanese occupation
. The investigation, initiated on the 56th anniversary of Liberation Day (August 15, 2004) by President Roh, was a part of a national campaign to shed light on the activity of collaborators during the Japanese occupation. Ironically, the campaign was vocally supported by Shin and backed by the Uri Party.
The party's popularity has decreased considerably after the 2004 election because of internal strife and scandals related to the President, who had admitted to feeling "incompetent" and unfit for the job.http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/en/doc/2003-10/11/content_271056.htm The Uri party failed to secure a single seat out of six electoral districts in the by-election held on April 30, 2005, losing its majority status in the National Assembly.
Prior to the Uri Party's devastating defeat in regional elections held on May 31, 2006, Chung apologized for the party's "self-righteous attitude and inadequacy". The party failed to win in all but one area, while the opposition Grand National Party
took 12 of the 16 key regional posts in the election. The Uri Party even lost in Daejeon
, a city long considered a secure ruling-party stronghold. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/5035878.stm
party called "the United New Democratic Party
" to form the Democratic Party
.
Korean language
Korean is the official language of the country Korea, in both South and North. It is also one of the two official languages in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in People's Republic of China. There are about 78 million Korean speakers worldwide. In the 15th century, a national writing...
: 열린우리당, en
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
: "Our Open Party"), generally abbreviated to Uri Party (ko: 우리당, en: "Our Party"), was the briefly ruling political party
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
in South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
(2004–2007) with a centrist political ideology. Chung Sye Kyun was the last leader of the party and twice served as its chairman.
Brief history
The party was formed when loyalists to president Roh Moo-hyunRoh Moo-hyun
Roh Moo-hyun GOM GCB was the 16th President of South Korea .Roh's pre-presidential political career was focused on human rights advocacy for student activists in South Korea. His electoral career later expanded to a focus on overcoming regionalism in South Korean politics, culminating in his...
in the Millennium Democratic Party chose to break ranks from other party members who showed lukewarm support for the administration. Some 42 out of 103 lawmakers of the Millennium Democratic Party joined the new party, and 5 lawmakers from the Grand National Party
Grand National Party
The Grand National Party is a conservative political party in South Korea. Its Korean name, Hannara, has a double meaning as "Great National" and "Korean National." The GNP holds a majority of seats in the 18th Assembly, lasting from 2008 to 2012....
also joined, seeking to complete political reforms.
As a result of the 2004 Parliamentary election
South Korean parliamentary election, 2004
Legislative elections were held in the Republic of Korea on April 15, 2004. The newly formed Uri Party and other parties supporting President Roh Moo-hyun, who was impeached by the outgoing National Assembly, won a majority of seats...
, Uri party achieved its first nationwide majority in the legislature by winning 152 of 299 seats.
Party platform and policy direction
Policywise, the Uri Party emphasized increased spending on social services for the low-income population while de-emphasizing economic growth. It was conciliatory towards North Korea while moving away from the traditional military alliance with the U.S. and Japan. Indeed, even after the testing of a nuclear bomb by North Korea, the Uri Party members have called for continued unconditional aid to North Korea, triggering heavy criticism and charges of its harboring Communist sympathizers. The Uri Party placed most of the blame for the crisis on the hard-line policies of the United States.Significant events
On August 19, 2004, the party suffered an embarrassing setback when party chairman Shin Ki Nam resigned following revelations by a national investigation that his father had worked for the Japanese military police during the Japanese occupation
Korea under Japanese rule
Korea was under Japanese rule as part of Japan's 35-year imperialist expansion . Japanese rule ended in 1945 shortly after the Japanese defeat in World War II....
. The investigation, initiated on the 56th anniversary of Liberation Day (August 15, 2004) by President Roh, was a part of a national campaign to shed light on the activity of collaborators during the Japanese occupation. Ironically, the campaign was vocally supported by Shin and backed by the Uri Party.
The party's popularity has decreased considerably after the 2004 election because of internal strife and scandals related to the President, who had admitted to feeling "incompetent" and unfit for the job.http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/en/doc/2003-10/11/content_271056.htm The Uri party failed to secure a single seat out of six electoral districts in the by-election held on April 30, 2005, losing its majority status in the National Assembly.
Prior to the Uri Party's devastating defeat in regional elections held on May 31, 2006, Chung apologized for the party's "self-righteous attitude and inadequacy". The party failed to win in all but one area, while the opposition Grand National Party
Grand National Party
The Grand National Party is a conservative political party in South Korea. Its Korean name, Hannara, has a double meaning as "Great National" and "Korean National." The GNP holds a majority of seats in the 18th Assembly, lasting from 2008 to 2012....
took 12 of the 16 key regional posts in the election. The Uri Party even lost in Daejeon
Daejeon
Daejeon is South Korea's fifth largest metropolis and the provincial capital of Chungnam. Located in the center of the country, Daejeon had a population of over 1.5 million in 2010. It is at the crossroads of Gyeongbu railway, Honam railway, Gyeongbu Expressway, and Honam Expressway. Within the...
, a city long considered a secure ruling-party stronghold. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/5035878.stm
Merger with the United New Democratic Party
On August 18, 2007, the delegates of the Uri Party decided to merge with the newly created liberalLiberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
party called "the United New Democratic Party
United New Democratic Party
The United New Democratic Party was a political party of South Korea. It was formed out of the Uri Party and its resulting splinter groups. Chung Dong-young was the UNDP candidate in the South Korean presidential election, 2007; he lost to Lee Myung-bak...
" to form the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (Republic of Korea)
The Democratic Party is a liberal political party in South Korea.The Democratic Party is the main opposition in the 18th Assembly, lasting from 2008 to 2012.-History:...
.
See also
- LiberalismLiberalismLiberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
- Contributions to liberal theoryContributions to liberal theoryIndividual contributors to classical liberalism and political liberalism are associated with philosophers of the Enlightenment. Liberalism as a specifically named ideology begins in the late 18th century as a movement towards self-government and away from aristocracy...
- Liberalism worldwideLiberalism worldwideThis article gives information on liberalism in diverse countries around the world. It is an overview of parties that adhere more or less to the ideas of political liberalism and is therefore a list of liberal parties around the world....
- List of liberal parties
- Liberal democracyLiberal democracyLiberal democracy, also known as constitutional democracy, is a common form of representative democracy. According to the principles of liberal democracy, elections should be free and fair, and the political process should be competitive...
- Politics of South KoreaPolitics of South KoreaPolitics of the Republic of Korea takes place in the framework of a semi-presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the President is the head of state, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and...
- Liberalism in South KoreaLiberalism in South KoreaThis article gives an overview of liberalism in South Korea. It is limited to liberal democratic parties with substantial support, mainly proven by having had a representation in parliament.-Introduction:...
- List of Korea-related topics