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Kim Young Sam

Kim Young Sam

Kim Young-sam (born December 20, 1927) was the President of South Korea from February 25, 1993 to February 25, 1998. During the 1970s and 1980s, he was a leading opposition politician, along with Kim Dae-jung. When the first democratic presidential election was held in 1987 after ex-general Chun Doo-hwan's retirement, Kim Young-sam and Kim Dae-jung ran against each other, splitting the opposition vote and enabling ex-general Roh Tae-woo - Chun Doo-hwan's hand-picked successor - to win the election. After his and Roh's party merged in 1990 to form a conservative ruling party, Kim Young-sam ran another presidential campaign against Kim Dae-jung in 1992 and won. Although Kim tried to reform the chaebols (large South Korean conglomerates), he is remembered mostly now for the Asian financial crisis, the Korean portion of which began in 1997 (the last year of his tenure) with the collapse of Kia Motors. A string of large-scale disasters marred South Korea during Kim's presidency, including the Seongsu Bridge collapse, a sinking of a ship, and a crash of an airliner, Korean Air Flight 801.

December 20

December 20 is the 354th day of the year (355th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 11 days remaining.

Events

- 1522 - Suleiman the Magnificent accepts the surrender of the surviving Knights of Rhodes, who are allowed to evacuate. They eventually re-settle on Malta and become known as the Knights of Malta.
- 1803 - Louisiana Purchase completed
- 1860 - South Carolina becomes first state to secede from the United States
- 1915 - Last Australian troops evacuated from Gallipoli
- 1917 - Cheka, first Soviet secret police, founded
- 1952 - United States Air Force C-124 crashes and burns in Moses Lake, Washington killing 87
- 1960 - National Front for the Liberation of Vietnam is formed
- 1984 - The Summit tunnel fire is the largest underground fire in history, as a freight train carrying over 1 million litres of petrol derails near the town of Todmorden in the Pennines
- 1988 - The United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances is signed at Vienna.
- 1989 - Operation Just Cause: United States sends troops into Panama to overthrow government of Manuel Noriega
- 1995 - NATO begins peacekeeping in Bosnia
- 1995 - An American Airlines Flight 965 Boeing 757 crashes into a mountain 50 km north of Cali, Colombia killing 160
- 1996 - NeXT merges with Apple Computer, starting the path to Mac OS X.
- 1999 - Vermont's Supreme Court rules that homosexual couples are entitled to same benefits and protections as married heterosexual couples
- 1999 - Macau is handed over to the People's Republic of China by Portugal.
- 2002 - US Senator Trent Lott resigns as majority leader.
- 2004 - The Miami Dolphins upset the defending Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots in a fourth quarter comeback and scoring two touchdowns in the final 4 minutes of the game to win 29-28.

Births

- 1537 - King John III of Sweden (d. 1592)
- 1566 - Edward Wightman, English Baptist preacher (d. 1612)
- 1579 - (baptized) John Fletcher, English playwright (d. 1625)
- 1626 - Veit Ludwig von Seckendorff, German statesman (d. 1692)
- 1629 - Pieter de Hooch, Dutch painter (d. 1684)
- 1717 - Charles Gravier, comte de Vergennes, French statesman and diplomat (d. 1787)
- 1786 - Pietro Raimondi, Italian composer (d. 1853)
- 1792 - Nicolas Charlet, French painter (d. 1845)
- 1805 - Thomas Graham, Scottish chemist (d. 1869)
- 1833 - Samuel Mudd, American physician (d. 1883)
- 1838 - Edwin Abbott Abbott, English schoolmaster, theologian, and author (d. 1926)
- 1841 - Ferdinand Buisson, French pacifist, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (d. 1932)
- 1860 - Dan Leno, English entertainer (d. 1904)
- 1861 - Ivana Kobilca, Slovenian painter (d. 1926)
- 1868 - Harvey Firestone, American automobile pioneer (d. 1938)
- 1881 - Branch Rickey, baseball executive (d. 1965)
- 1886 - Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman, American tennis player (d. 1974)
- 1890 - Yvonne Arnaud, French-born actress (d. 1958)
- 1890 - Jaroslav Heyrovský, Czech chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1967)
- 1894 - Sir Robert Menzies, twelfth Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1978)
- 1898 - Irene Dunne, American actress (d. 1990)
- 1901 - Robert Van de Graaff, American physicist and inventor (d. 1967)
- 1902 - Sidney Hook, American philosopher (d. 1989)
- 1902 - George Edward Alexander Windsor, Duke of Kent (d. 1942)
- 1917 - David Bohm, American-born physicist, philosopher, and neuropsychologist (d. 1992)
- 1922 - George Roy Hill, American film director (d. 2002)
- 1926 - Sir Geoffrey Howe, British politician
- 1926 - Otto Graf Lambsdorff, German politician
- 1927 - Kim Young-sam, President of South Korea
- 1933 - Jean Carnahan, U.S. Senator
- 1942 - Bob Hayes, American football player (d. 2002)
- 1946 - Uri Geller, Israeli psychic
- 1946 - Dick Wolf, American television series creator
- 1949 - Soumaïla Cissé, Malian politician
- 1952 - Jenny Agutter, English actress
- 1954 - Michael Badalucco, American actor
- 1957 - Billy Bragg, English singer and songwriter
- 1957 - Mike Watt, American bassist
- 1957 - Joyce Hyser, American actress
- 1957 - Anna Vissi, Greek singer
- 1960 - Nalo Hopkinson, Canadian writer
- 1965 - Rich Gannon, American football player
- 1970 - Nicole DeBoer, Canadian actress
- 1970 - Massimo Ellul, Maltese entrepreneur and philanthropist
- 1978 - Njitap Geremi, Cameroon footballer
- 1980 - Ashley Cole, English footballer
- 1980 - Lloyd Bradbury, Ascendancy 9 Media CEO
- 1990 - JoJo, American singer

Deaths

- 217 - Pope Zephyrinus
- 860 - King Ethelbald of Wessex
- 910 - Alfonso III of Leon
- 1022 - Elvira Mendes, queen of Alfonso V of Castile (b. 996)
- 1494 - Matteo Maria Boiardo, Italian poet
- 1524 - Thomas Linacre, English scholar and physician
- 1539 - Johannes Lupi, Flemish composer
- 1590 - Ambroise Paré, French physician (b. 1510)
- 1722 - Kangxi Emperor of China (b. 1654)
- 1740 - Richard Boyle, 2nd Viscount Shannon, English military officer and statesman (b. 1675)
- 1768 - Carlo Innocenzio Maria Frugoni, Italian poet (b. 1692)
- 1812 - Sacagawea, Shoshone guide for the Lewis and Clark Expedition
- 1929 - Émile Loubet, 7th President of France (b.1838)
- 1937 - Erich Ludendorff, German general (b. 1865)
- 1941 - Igor Severyanin, Russian poet (b. 1887)
- 1954 - James Hilton, American author (b. 1900)
- 1961 - Moss Hart, American author (b. 1904)
- 1961 - Earle Page, eleventh Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1880)
- 1968 - John Steinbeck, American writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1902)
- 1973 - Luis Carrero Blanco, Prime Minister of Spain (assassinated) (b. 1903)
- 1973 - Bobby Darin, American singer (b. 1936)
- 1974 - André Jolivet, French composer (b. 1905)
- 1976 - Richard J. Daley, Mayor of Chicago (b. 1902)
- 1982 - Arthur Rubinstein, Polish-born pianist (b. 1887)
- 1984 - Gonzalo Márquez, Venezuelan Major League Baseball player (b. 1946)
- 1989 - Kurt Böhme, German bass (b. 1908)
- 1994 - Dean Rusk, United States Secretary of State (b. 1909)
- 1996 - Carl Sagan, American astronomer and writer (b. 1934)
- 1997 - Denise Levertov, English-born poet (b. 1923)
- 1997 - Juzo Itami, Japanese actor and director (b. 1933)
- 1998 - Irene Hervey, American actress (b. 1910)
- 1998 - Alan Lloyd Hodgkin, British scientist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1916)
- 1999 - Hank Snow, Canadian singer (b. 1914)
- 2000 - Mirza Ghulam Hafiz, Indian statesman, politician, and philanthropist (b. 1920)
- 2001 - Foster Brooks, American actor and comedian (b. 1912)
- 2001 - Léopold Sédar Senghor, first President of Senegal (b. 1906)

External links

- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/december/20 BBC: On This Day] ---- December 19 - December 21 - November 20 - January 20 -- listing of all days ko:12월 20일 ms:20 Disember ja:12月20日 simple:December 20 th:20 ธันวาคม

President of South Korea

The President is head of state of South Korea.

List of heads of government of the Republic of Korea

Notes

#The Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea was a government in exile based in Shanghai, China. Although the current South Korean government insists on being its successor to assert legitimacy, the government was not internationally recognized. #Hong Jin is also known as Hong Myun-hui (홍면희). #From March 12 to May 14, 2004, Prime Minister Goh Kun (고건) was the acting president)

External links

- [http://english.president.go.kr/ Official Website of the President of the Republic of Korea] South Korea, President
- Category:Government of South Korea ko:대한민국의 대통령 ja:大統領 (大韓民国)

South Korea

South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea, is a country located in East Asia, in the southern half of the Korean Peninsula. To the north, it is bordered by North Korea, with which it formed a single nation until 1948. In Korean, it is called Daehan Minguk (대한민국, 大韓民國). Its short name is Hanguk (한국, Han nation, usually referring to Korea) or Namhan (남한, South Han, referring to South Korea.) See Names of Korea.
History
At the end of World War II, Korea was divided at the 38th parallel into the Soviet Union-occupied northern half and the United States-occupied southern half, each forming its own government in 1948. In June 1950, the Korean War broke out. The United Nations-backed South and the Communist-backed North eventually reached a stalemate and an armistice was signed in 1953, splitting the peninsula along the demilitarised zone at about the original demarcation line. After the war, the autocratic government of Syngman Rhee was thrown out of power by student uprising and a brief period of civil rule was established in 1960. However, a military coup led by general Park Chung-hee, in the next year the nation turned into a dictatorship that lasted 18 years, during which period it achieved rapid economic growth. Park was assassinated in 1979, and general Chun Doo-hwan seized power with another coup. Massive student demonstrations in the spring of 1980 resulted in a military crackdown and the Gwangju Massacre. Civil unrest forced the end of military rule, and progressively democratic reforms continued under the presidencies of Roh Tae-woo, Kim Young-sam, and Kim Dae-jung. In the 1990s, South Korea became one of the world's largest economies. In 1996 South Korea joined the OECD. Although the nation suffered severe economic hardship during the Asian financial crisis, South Korea today is a fully functioning modern democracy and one of Asia’s most affluent nations. A potential Korean reunification has remained a prominent topic; no peace treaty has yet been signed with the North. In June 2000, a historic first North-South summit took place, part of the South's continuing Sunshine Policy of engagement. Since then, regular contacts have led to a cautious thaw.
Government and Politics
Main articles: Politics of South Korea, Elections in South Korea Elections in South Korea The Republic of Korea is a developed, stable, democratic republic with powers shared between the president and the legislature. The head of state of the Republic of Korea is the president, who is elected by direct popular vote for a single five-year term. In addition to being the highest representative of the republic and commander-in-chief of the armed forces, the president also has considerable executive powers and appoints the prime minister with approval of the National Assembly, as well as appointing and presiding over the State Council or cabinet. cabinet] The unicameral Korean legislature is the National Assembly or Gukhoe (국회/), whose members serve a four-year term of office. The legislature currently has 299 seats, of which 243 are elected by regional vote and the remainder are distributed by the proportional representation ballot. The highest judiciary body is the Supreme Court, whose justices are appointed by the president with the consent of the National Assembly. Since 1948, South Korea has been governed under six constitutions. Each constitution signifies a new South Korean republic. The current government is known as the Sixth Republic under the 1988 constitution. The main political parties in South Korea are the Uri Party, the Grand National Party (GNP), the Democratic Labor Party (DLP), and the Democratic Party (DP). In late 2003 a faction of the Millennium Democratic Party (later DP) split from the party and formed the liberal Uri Party, which gained a slim majority in the National Assembly in the April 2004 legislative elections but failed to secure it after subsequent reelections. The conservative GNP and centrist DP form the political opposition. The left-wing DLP, which is aligned with labour unions, represents the interests of the working class.
Geography
labour unions Main article: Geography of South Korea Korea forms a peninsula that extends some 1,100 km from the Asian mainland, flanked by the Yellow Sea (West Sea) and the Sea of Japan (East Sea), and terminated by the Korea Strait and the East China Sea to the south. The southern landscape consists of partially forested mountain ranges to the east, separated by deep, narrow valleys. Densely populated and cultivated coastal plains are found in the west and south. About 3,000 islands, most of which are small and uninhabited, lie off the western and southern coasts. The total area of South Korea is 99,268 km². South Korea is a mountainous country. Lowlands, located primarily in the west and southeast, constitute only 30 percent of the total land area. South Korea can be divided into three general regions: an eastern region of high mountain ranges and narrow coastal plains; a western region of broad coastal plains, river basins, and rolling hills; and a southern region, where a maze of mountains and valleys in the west contrasts with the broad basin of the Nakdong River in the southeast. Halla-san, an extinct volcano that forms Jeju Island, is the country's highest point at 1,950 m (6,398 ft). Jeju Island is located about 100 km (about 60 mi) off the southern coast of South Korea. It is the country's largest island, with an area of 1,845 km² (712 sq mi).
Climate
The local climate is relatively temperate, with precipitation heavier in summer during a short rainy season called jangma, and winters that can be bitterly cold on occasion. In Seoul the average January temperature range is -7 °C to 1 °C (19 °F to 33 °F), and the average July temperature range is 22 °C to 29 °C (71 °F to 83 °F). Winter temperatures are higher along the southern coast and considerably lower in the mountainous interior. Rainfall is concentrated in the summer months of June through September. The southern coast is subject to late summer typhoons that bring strong winds and heavy rains. The average annual precipitation in Seoul is 1370 millimeters (54 inches). In Busan, it is 1470 mm (58 inches). precipitation, 2004]]
Wildlife
Most of South Korea's forests were cleared over many centuries for use as firewood and building materials. However, they have rebounded since the 1970s as a result of intensive reforestation efforts. The country's few remaining old-growth forests are protected in nature reserves. South Korea also has more than a dozen national parks. One of the world's most interesting wildlife sanctuaries has developed in the DMZ, having been virtually untouched since 1953. The uninhabited zone has become a haven for many kinds of wildlife, particularly migrating birds. The national flower of South Korea is the Rose of Sharon, a species of hibiscus that blooms continually from July through October. In South Korea, it is known as mugunghwa, meaning "eternal flower". Large mammals such as tigers, bears, and lynx were once abundant throughout the Korean peninsula. However, they have virtually disappeared due to human settlement, loss of forest habitat, and overhunting. The Siberian tiger has not been sighted in South Korea since the 1920s. The peninsula has several indigenous species of deer, including the roe deer and the Siberian musk deer. See also: Regions of Korea
Provinces and cities
Main article: Administrative divisions of South Korea. South Korea consists of 1 Special City (Teukbyeolsi; 특별시; 特別市), 6 Metropolitan Cities (Gwangyeoksi, singular and plural; 광역시; 廣域市), and 9 Provinces (do, singular and plural; 도; 道). The names below are given in English, Revised Romanization, Hangul, and Hanja.
Special City

- Seoul Special City (Seoul Teukbyeolsi; 서울 특별시)
Metropolitan Cities

- Busan Metropolitan City (Busan Gwangyeoksi; 부산 광역시; 釜山廣域市)
- Incheon Metropolitan City (Incheon Gwangyeoksi; 인천 광역시; 仁川廣域市)
- Daegu Metropolitan City (Daegu Gwangyeoksi; 대구 광역시; 大邱廣域市)
- Daejeon Metropolitan City (Daejeon Gwangyeoksi; 대전 광역시; 大田廣域市)
- Gwangju Metropolitan City (Gwangju Gwangyeoksi; 광주 광역시; 光州廣域市)
- Ulsan Metropolitan City (Ulsan Gwangyeoksi; 울산 광역시; 蔚山廣域市)
Provinces

- Gyeonggi-do (경기도, 京畿道)
- Gangwon-do (강원도, 江原道 or 남-강원도, 南江原道)
- Chungcheongbuk-do (충청북도, 忠清北道)
- Chungcheongnam-do (충청남도, 忠清南道)
- Jeollabuk-do (전라북도, 全羅北道)
- Jeollanam-do (전라남도, 全羅南道)
- Gyeongsangbuk-do (경상북도, 慶尚北道)
- Gyeongsangnam-do (경상남도, 慶尚南道)
- Jeju-do (제주도, 濟州道) See also: Provinces of Korea and Special cities of Korea for historical information.
Economy
Main article: Economy of South Korea As one of the East Asian Tigers, South Korea has achieved an impressive record of growth and integration into the high-tech modern global economy, making South Korea the 10th largest economy in the world. In the aftermath of WWII, GDP per capita was comparable with levels in the poorer countries of Africa and Asia. Then the Korean War made conditions in Korea even worse. Today its GDP per capita is roughly 20 times North Korea's and equal to the medium economies of the European Union. Calculating the GDP with Purchasing power parity in 2004, South Korea joined the trillion dollar club of world economies. This success through the late 1980s was achieved by a system of close government-business ties, including directed credit, import restrictions, sponsorship of specific industries, and a strong labour effort. The government promoted the import of raw materials and technology at the expense of consumer goods and encouraged savings and investment over consumption. From the late 1950s to the mid-1980s, South Korean exports grew at a rate of 25 percent per year. The Asian financial crisis of 1997 exposed longstanding weaknesses in South Korea's development model, including high debt/equity ratios, massive foreign borrowing, and an undisciplined financial sector. Growth plunged by 6.6% in 1998, then strongly recovered to 10.8% in 1999 and 9.2% in 2000. Growth fell back to 3.3% in 2001 because of the slowing global economy, falling exports, and the perception that much-needed corporate and financial reforms have stalled. Led by industry and construction, growth in 2002 was an impressive 5.8%, despite anemic global growth. As of 2005, in addition to its global leadership in high-speed Internet service, memory semiconductors, flat-panel screens and mobile phones, South Korea ranks first in shipbuilding, third in tire production, fourth in synthetic fiber output, fifth in automotive production and sixth in steel output. The nation also ranked 12th globally in terms of nominal gross domestic product, trade and exports. South Korea's solid economy is characterised by moderate inflation, low unemployment, an export surplus, and fairly equal distribution of income.
Chaebol
A distinctive feature of the South Korean economy is the long-dominant position of the chaebol (government-assisted, family-controlled conglomerates), most of which were established after the Korean War. In 1995, the top four chaebols were Hyundai, Samsung, Daewoo, and LG. Since the economic crisis of late 1990s, the corporate landscape has changed considerably, partly as a result of government reforms. In 2003, only 4 of the 18 largest chaebol remained. However, they continue to dominate economic activity. South Korea's chaebol are often compared with Japan's keiretsu business groupings, the successors to the pre-war zaibatsu ("chaebol" and "zaibatsu" are Korean and Japanese pronunciations of the same Chinese characters). However, the chaebol are still largely controlled by their founding families, unlike the keiretsu, which are run by professional corporate managers. Additionally, the government prevented the chaebol from owning private banks, partly in order to increase its own leverage over the banks in areas such as credit allocation. The keiretsu, in contrast, usually work with an affiliated bank, giving the affiliated companies almost unlimited access to credit.
Demographics
Main article: Demographics of South Korea
The Korean people
Korea's population is one of the most ethnically and linguistically homogeneous in the world, with the only significant minority being a small Chinese community. Koreans have lived in Manchuria for many centuries, and are now a minority in China. Joseph Stalin forced thousands of ethnic Koreans residing in or near Vladivostok and Khabarovsk to relocate to the Central Asian part of the U.S.S.R., fearing Korean collaboration with the Japanese, while the majority of the Korean population in Japan was brought/kidnapped there as forced labour during the colonial period. Political, social and economic instability of South Korea in the past has driven many South Koreans to emigrate to foreign countries, particularly the United States and Canada. California has a large number of Koreans and Korean-Americans, numbering well over one million people. In recent years the migration levels for South Korean people leaving and returning to South Korea were relatively equal. The annual rate of population increase in South Korea has dropped steadily from more than 3 percent in the late 1950s to 0.38 percent in 2005 as a result of people choosing to have fewer children than in the past. Urbanisation of the country has proceeded rapidly since the 1960s, with substantial migration from rural to urban areas; 85 percent of the population is now classified as urban. Following the division of the Korean peninsula after WWII, about 4 million people from North Korea crossed the border to South Korea. This sudden population increase was partly offset over the next 40 years by emigration from South Korea, especially to the United States and Canada. However, South Korea’s burgeoning economy and improved political climate in the early and mid-1990s slowed the high emigration rates typical of the late 1980s. Many of those who emigrated chose to return to South Korea. Currently, the migration rate for South Koreans is close to zero. There are many thousands of foreign workers in South Korea. A news article from the newspaper 'Korean Herald' (dated the sixth of June, 2005) states this:
- "According to the ministry data, as of the end of April, the total size of the alien work force (in South Korea) stands at 378,000, 52 percent of which, or 199,000, are here illegally. " This 378,000 figure is considered by many to be low and only represents the number of known foreign workers, illegal or not. Some estimates put the total foreign population at over half a million. Because of the high number of illegal foreign workers in South Korea, it is difficult to get exact figures on the number of foreigners. This large workforce and foreign population mainly comes from South Asian countries, such as India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and the Philippines. There are also many workers from the former Soviet Union countries. Many migrant workers also come from Nigeria. Along with these workers from South Asia and elsewhere, there are also about 11,000 foreign ex-pat English teachers from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa.
Cities
About 85 percent of South Koreans live in urban areas. The capital city of Seoul had 10.3 million inhabitants in 2003, making it the most populated single city (excluding greater metropolitan areas) in the world. Seoul is also the country's largest city and chief industrial centre. Its density has allowed it to become one of the most "digitally-wired" cities in today's globally connected economy. Other major cities include Busan (3.9 million), Incheon (2.9 million), Daegu (2.65 million), Daejeon (1.48 million), Gwangju (1.38 million) and Ulsan (1.15 million). Busan is the country's principal seaport.
Language
seaport by King Sejong ]] South Korea's national language is Korean. As with Japanese, with which it shares some grammatical features, Korean is sometimes called an isolate, and sometimes an Altaic language. Like Japanese and some other East Asian languages, Korean has historically borrowed many words from neighboring China. For thousands of years, a system based on borrowed Chinese characters (hanja) was used in Korea to read and write Korean. However, hanja fit poorly with the Korean language's grammar and phonetics, and was difficult to learn. A new writing system, hangul, was invented in 1446 by King Sejong the Great, with the intention to foster wider literacy among the Korean people. Hangul was promulgated in the Hunmin Jeongeum (훈민정음/訓民正音). Unlike Chinese characters, hangul is a phonetically based alphabet and can be learned very quickly. Hangul's adoption was long resisted by the Korean elite, but it is now used exclusively in North Korea. In South Korea, Chinese loan words are sometimes still written in hanja, but the strong trend is one of ever-decreasing use of hanja. In 2000 the government adopted the Revised Romanisation of Korean. Revised Romanisation of Korean World Heritage Site list in 1995.]]
Religion
According to 2003 statistics compiled by the South Korean government, about 46 percent of citizens profess to follow no particular religion. Christians account for 27.3% of the population and Buddhists 25.3%. Buddhism is stronger in the more conservative east of the country, namely the Yeongnam and Gangwon regions, where it accounts for more than half of the religious population. There are a number of different "schools" in Korean Buddhism, including the Seon (imported from Chan Buddhism in China, then later taught to the Japanese as Zen Buddhism). Many adherents of Buddhism combine Buddhist practice and shamanism. Christianity initially got a foothold in Korea in the 19th century, then in the 1970s and early 1980s grew exponentially, and despite slower growth in the 1990s, caught up to Buddhism as a significant faith. Protestant churches including Presbyterians, Pentecostals, and Methodists make up about 19.8% of the total population, while Roman Catholics occupy about 7.4%. Christians are especially strong in the west of the country including Seoul, Gyeonggi and Honam regions. Seoul is home to Yoido Full Gospel Church, the largest single church in the world. Various other religions account for about 2.5 percent of the religious population. These include the Wonbulgyo movement, which emphasises the unity of all things. Another notable minor religion is Cheondogyo, an indigenous faith combining elements of Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, and Christianity. Confucianism is also small in terms of self-declared adherents, but the great majority of South Koreans, irrespective of their formal religious affiliation, are strongly influenced by Confucian values, which continue to permeate Korean culture.
Culture
Main articles: Culture of Korea, Contemporary culture of South Korea Contemporary culture of South Korea Korean cultural development is generally divided into periods coinciding with political development: the Three Kingdoms period (57 B.C. - 668 A.D.), the Unified Silla dynasty (668-935), the Koryo dynasty (918-1392), the Joseon dynasty (1392-1910), and the modern period (1910-present). South Korea shares its traditional culture with that of North Korea, but the two Koreas have developed distinct contemporary forms of culture since its division into two separate states. Historically, Korea was strongly influenced by Chinese culture and acted as a conduit of culture from China to Japan. Koreans adapted many Chinese art forms with innovation and skill, creating distinctively Korean forms. For many centuries, metalwork, sculpture, painting, and ceramics flourished throughout the Korean peninsula. Buddhism provided one of the most significant sources for artistic expression. Confucianism, also prominent, emphasised the importance of literature and calligraphy, as well as portrait and landscape painting. Western influence began to dominate Korean society in the late 1800s, when Korea opened itself to the Western world. During the Japanese colonial rule, indigenous traditions were sometimes violently suppressed. Since then, however, Koreans have made a concerted effort to keep their cultural traditions alive. The South Korean government actively encourages the traditional arts, as well as modern forms, through funding and education programs as well as sponsorship of an annual national competitive exhibition. Many great scholars and philosophers lived in Korea, but are not well known to outsiders due to the country's early isolationism. One example is King Sejong the Great, who invented the world's first rain gauge and water clock. Despite China's historical influence on Korean culture, the roles are reversed today, with an increased Korean influence in China in terms of popular music, fashion and television drama. In recent years, Korean pop culture has gained massive popularity in many parts of Asia (and in more recent years, Western Cultures as well), earning the name Hanryu (or sometimes romanized as Hallyu) or "Korean Wave". Korean pop culture has also made way into Japan, with Television drama such as Winter Sonata is gaining massive popularity in Japan. Many have viewed the popularity of Korean pop culture in Japan as a path to reconciliation between the two countries. South Korea today, with government facilitation, has the highest penetration of high-speed internet access to households in the world. Its infatuation with technology, including feature-rich cell phones and online gaming, has become a part of its modern culture. See also: List of Koreans, Korean cuisine, Taekwondo, Music of Korea, Korean painting, Korean dance, Korean ceramics

Foreign relations

South Korea and Japan share a complex and sometimes adversarial history. Several contentious remnants of Japan's role in World War II still make headlines, including the Sea of Japan naming dispute, Yasukuni Shrine visits, and ownership of the Dok-do/Takeshima. Refer to the Korean-Japanese disputes for other disputes.

Tourism

Domestic tourism is quite popular among Koreans, but is still catching on with non-Koreans. Seoul is the principal tourist destination for non-Koreans. Popular tourist destinations for Koreans include Seorak-san national park, the historic city of Gyeongju, and semi-tropical Jeju Island. Travel to North Korea is not normally possible except with special permission, but in recent years organised group tours have taken South Koreans to Kŭmgang-san mountain in the North.

Notes

External links

- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/country_profiles/1123668.stm BBC News - Country Profile: South Korea]
- [http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/ks.html CIA World Factbook - South Korea]
- [http://www.guardian.co.uk/korea/0,2759,331519,00.html Guardian Unlimited - Special Report: North and South Korea]
- [http://www.kois.go.kr/ Korea.net: Gateway to Korea] portal from the KOIS government agency
- [http://www.nso.go.kr/eng/index.shtml Korea National Statistical Office]
- [http://www.koreapeacenetwork.info/index.htm Korea Peace Network] summary of past/current American policy towards Korea
- [http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/krtoc.html Library of Congress - Country Study: South Korea] data as of June 1990
- [http://search.looksmart.com/p/browse/us1/us317836/us317916/us559898/us559967/us559996 LookSmart - South Korea] directory category
- [http://korea.assembly.go.kr/index.jsp National Assembly] official site
- [http://dmoz.org/Regional/Asia/South_Korea/ Open Directory Project - South Korea] directory category
- [http://chinese-school.netfirms.com/abacus-stocks-South-Korea.html South Korea Stock Market] summary of the South Korea stock market
- [http://english.president.go.kr/warp/app/home/en_home?_sso_id_=92186551bedfcc4f9fe89055e599b422 The Blue House] official presidential site
- [http://www.tour2korea.com/ Tour2Korea] operated by Korea National Tourism Organization
-
- [http://dir.yahoo.com/Regional/Countries/Korea__South/ Yahoo! - South Korea] directory category
- [http://news.yahoo.com/fc/World/South_Korea Yahoo! News - Full Coverage: South Korea]
- [http://korea.wikicities.com Korea Wiki on Wikicities] Category:East Asian countries zh-min-nan:Hân-kok ko:대한민국 ms:Korea Selatan ja:大韓民国 simple:South Korea th:ประเทศเกาหลีใต้

February 25

February 25 is the 56th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 309 days remaining, 310 in leap years.

Events

- 138 - The Emperor Hadrian adopts Antoninus Pius, effectively making him his successor.
- 1570 - Pope Pius V excommunicates Queen Elizabeth I of England.
- 1793 - George Washington holds the first Cabinet meeting as President of the United States.
- 1836 - Samuel Colt receives an American patent for the Colt revolver.
- 1837 - First US electric printing press patented by Thomas Davenport
- 1870 - Hiram Rhoades Revels, a Republican from Mississippi, is sworn into the United States Senate, becoming the first African American ever to sit in the U.S. Congress.
- 1901 - J.P. Morgan incorporates the United States Steel Corporation.
- 1912 - Marie-Adélaïde, the eldest of six daughters of Guillaume IV, becomes the first reigning Grand Duchess of Luxembourg.
- 1913 - The 16th Amendment to the United States Constitution, authorizing a graduated income tax, is ratified.
- 1919 - Oregon places a 1 cent per US gallon tax on gasoline, becoming the first U.S. state to levy a gasoline tax.
- 1921 - The Democratic Republic of Georgia is occupied by the Soviet Russia.
- 1925 - Glacier Bay National Monument (now Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve) is established in Alaska.
- 1928 - Charles Jenkins Laboratories of Washington, DC becomes the first holder of a television license from the Federal Radio Commission.
- 1933 - The USS Ranger is launched, becoming the first custom-built aircraft carrier.
- 1951 - The first Pan American Games are held in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
- 1954 - Gamal Abdul Nasser is made premier of Egypt.
- 1964 - Cassius Clay beats Sonny Liston in Miami Beach, Florida, and is crowned the heavyweight champion of the world.
- 1969 - Germany gives $5 million to an Arab terrorist as ransom for the passengers and crew of a hijacked jumbo jet.
- 1986 - EDSA Revolution: President Ferdinand Marcos of the Philippines flees the nation after 20 years of rule; Corazon Aquino becomes the first Filipino woman president.
- 1991 - Gulf War: An Iraqi Scud missile hits an American military barracks in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia killing 28 US Marines.
- 2004 - On Ash Wednesday, Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ is released in movie theaters across the United States, grossing approximately $370 million domestically.
- 2005 - BTK suspect Dennis Rader arrested in Park City, Kansas.

Births

- 1398 - Xuande, Emperor of China (d. 1435)
- 1591 - Friedrich von Spee, German writer (d. 1635)
- 1643 - Ahmed II, Ottoman Sultan (d. 1695)
- 1663 - Pierre Antoine Motteux, French-born English dramatist (d. 1718)
- 1682 - Giovanni Battista Morgagni, Italian anatomist (d. 1771)
- 1692 - Karl Ludwig, Freiherr von Pöllnitz, German adventurer and writer (d. 1775)
- 1707 - Carlo Goldoni, Italian writer (d. 1793)
- 1714 - René Nicolas Charles Augustin de Maupeou, Chancellor of France (d. 1792)
- 1714 - Hyde Parker, British admiral (d. 1782)
- 1725 - Karl Wilhelm Ramler, German poet (d. 1798)
- 1752 - John Graves Simcoe, first Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada (d. 1806)
- 1778 - José de San Martín, Argentine general and liberator of South America
- 1841 - Pierre-Auguste Renoir, French painter, graphic artist and sculptor (d. 1919)
- 1842 - Karl May, German writer (d. 1912)
- 1845 - George Reid, fourth Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1918)
- 1873 - Enrico Caruso, Italian tenor (d. 1921)
- 1877 - Erich von Hornbostel, Austrian musicologist (d. 1935)
- 1888 - John Foster Dulles, U.S. Secretary of State (d. 1959)
- 1890 - Dame Myra Hess, English pianist (d. 1965)
- 1890 - Vyacheslav Molotov, Soviet politician (d. 1986)
- 1901 - Zeppo Marx, American actor (d. 1979)
- 1910 - Millicent Fenwick, American fashion editor and politician (d. 1992)
- 1913 - Jim Backus, American actor (d. 1989)
- 1913 - Gert Fröbe, German actor (d. 1988)
- 1916 - Reinhard Bendix, German sociologist (d. 1991)
- 1917 - Anthony Burgess, English author (d. 1993)
- 1918 - Barney Ewell, American athlete (d. 1996)
- 1918 - Bobby Riggs, American tennis player (d. 1995)
- 1919 - Karl Pribram, Austrian neuroscientist
- 1921 - Pierre Laporte, Canadian statesman (assassinated) (d. 1970)
- 1925 - Edward Gorey, American illustrator (d. 2000)
- 1928 - Larry Gelbart, American comedy writer
- 1932 - Faron Young, American singer (d.1996)
- 1935 - Sally Jessy Raphaël, American talk show host
- 1937 - Tom Courtenay, British actor
- 1937 - Bob Schieffer, American broadcast journalist
- 1938 - Diane Baker, American actress
- 1938 - Herb Elliott, Australian runner
- 1940 - Billy Packer, American sports broadcaster
- 1940 - Ron Santo, baseball player
- 1942 - Karen Grassle, American actress
- 1943 - Wilson Piazza, Brazilian footballer
- 1943 - George Harrison, Lead guitarist of The Beatles (d. 2001)
- 1946 - Franz Xaver Kroetz, German dramatist
- 1947 - Lee Evans, American athlete
- 1947 - Doug Yule, American bass guitarist, (The Velvet Underground)
- 1948 - Danny Denzongpa, Indian actor
- 1949 - Ric Flair, American professional wrestler
- 1950 - Neil Jordan, Irish director, writer, and producer
- 1950 - Néstor Kirchner, President of Argentina
- 1951 - Don Quarrie, Jamaican runner
- 1952 - Joey Dunlop, Irish motorcycle racer (d. 2000)
- 1953 - José María Aznar, Prime Minister of Spain
- 1954 - John Doe, American musician
- 1960 - Stefan Blöcher, German field hockey player
- 1961 - Davey Allison, American race car driver (d. 1993)
- 1961 - Todd Blackledge, American football player
- 1962 - Birgit Fischer, German kayaker
- 1963 - Nancy O'Dell, American reporter and television personality
- 1964 - Don Majkowski, American football player
- 1966 - Alexis Denisof, American actor
- 1966 - Samson Kitur, Kenyan athlete (d. 2003)
- 1966 - Téa Leoni, American actress
- 1969 - Paul Trimboli, Australian footballer
- 1971 - Sean Astin, American actor
- 1971 - Dave Harris, American disc jockey
- 1977 - Josh Wolff, American hockey player
- 1978 - Sara Sinha, English singer and guitarist
- 1981 - Park Ji-Sung, Korean footballer
- 1982 - Bert McCracken, American singer (The Used)
- 1986 - Justin Berfield, American actor
- 1998 - Brendon Baerg, American actor

Deaths

- 1246 - Dafydd ap Llywelyn, Prince of Gwynedd
- 1522 - William Lilye, English classical scholar
- 1536 - Berthold Haller, German-born reformer (b. 1492)
- 1553 - Hirate Masahide, Japanese diplomat and tutor of Oda Nobunaga (suicide) (d. 1492)
- 1558 - Eleanor of Austria, Queen of Portugal and France (b. 1498)
- 1577 - King Eric XIV of Sweden (b. 1533)
- 1601 - Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, English politician (b. 1566)
- 1634 - Albrecht von Wallenstein, Austrian general (b. 1583)
- 1643 - Marco da Gagliano, Italian composer (b. 1582)
- 1655 - Daniel Heinsius, Flemish scholar (b. 1580)
- 1682 - Alessandro Stradella, Italian composer (b. 1644)
- 1713 - King Frederick I of Prussia (b. 1657)
- 1715 - Pu Songling, Chinese writer (b. 1640)
- 1723 - Sir Christopher Wren, English architect (b. 1632)
- 1756 - Eliza Haywood, English actress and writer (b. 1693)
- 1798 - Louis-Jules Mancini-Mazarini, Duc de Nivernais, French diplomat and writer (b. 1716)
- 1805 - Thomas Pownall, British colonial statesman (b. 1722)
- 1831 - Friedrich Maximilian Klinger, German writer (b. 1752)
- 1850 - Daoguang, Emperor of China (b. 1782)
- 1852 - Thomas Moore, Irish poet (b. 1779)
- 1860 - Chauncey Allen Goodrich, American clergyman, educator, and lexicographer (b. 1790)
- 1899 - Paul Julius Reuter, German-born journalist (b. 1816)
- 1912 - Guillaume IV, Grand Duke of Luxembourg (b. 1852)
- 1945 - Mário de Andrade, Brazilian writer and photographer (b. 1893)
- 1950 - George Minot, American physician, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1885)
- 1957 - George "Bugs" Moran, American gangster (b. 1893)
- 1964 - Grace Metalious, American writer (b. 1924)
- 1971 - Theodor Svedberg, Swedish chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1884)
- 1975 - Elijah Muhammad, American Black Muslim leader (b. 1897)
- 1978 - Daniel "Chappie" James Jr., American general (b. 1920)
- 1983 - Tennessee Williams, American playwright (b. 1911)
- 1986 - Ezher"Bracko"Salihbasic, Illest Bosnian
- 1987 - James Coco, American actor (b. 1930)
- 1994 - Baruch Goldstein, American-born mass killer (b. 1956)
- 1994 - Jersey Joe Walcott, American boxer (b. 1914)
- 1996 - Haing S. Ngor, Cambodian-born actor (b. 1940)
- 1999 - Glenn T. Seaborg, American chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1912)
- 2001 - Sir Donald Bradman, Australian cricketer (b. 1908)
- 2003 - Tom O'Higgins, Irish Chief Justice (b. 1916)
- 2003 - Alberto Sordi, Italian actor (b. 1920)

Holidays and observances

- Februaristaking (Netherlands) - strike against Nazi occupier, 1941
- Kuwait's national day.

External links

- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/february/25 BBC: On This Day]
- [http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/20050225.html The New York Times: On This Day] ---- February 24 - February 26 - January 25 - March 25 -- listing of all days ko:2월 25일 ms:25 Februari ja:2月25日 simple:February 25 th:25 กุมภาพันธ์

1993

1993 (MCMXCIII) is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003).

Events

January

Wikipedia:Categorization#Year categories.]]
- January 1 - Czechoslovakia divides. Establishment of independent Slovakia and Czech Republic.
- January 3 - In Moscow, George H. W. Bush and Boris Yeltsin sign the second Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START).
- January 5 - Washington State executes Westley Allan Dodd by hanging (the first legal hanging in America since 1965)
- January 9 – Jean-Claude Romand kills his family and tries to burn himself with his home in France
- January 11 - First edition of WWF Monday Night RAW appears on the USA Network
- January 15 - Salvatore Riina, the Mafia boss known as 'The Beast', is arrested in Sicily after three-decades as a fugitive
- January 18 - For the first time, Martin Luther King Jr. holiday is officially observed in all 50 American states.
- January 19
- IBM announces a $4.97 billion loss for 1992 which is the largest single-year corporate loss in United States history
- Iraq disarmament crisis: Iraq refuses to allow UNSCOM inspectors to use its own aircraft to fly into Iraq, and begins military operations in the demilitarized zone between Iraq and Kuwait, and the northern No-Fly Zone. US forces fire approximately 40 Tomahawk cruise missiles at Baghdad factories linked to Iraq's illegal nuclear weapons program. Iraq then informs UNSCOM that it will be able to resume its flights
- January 20 - Bill Clinton succeeds George H. W. Bush as President of the United States of America
- January 25
- Catherine Callbeck becomes Premier of Prince Edward Island, becoming the first female Premier to be elected in Canada. (Rita Johnston was Canada's first female Premier but was not elected)
- Mir Aimal Kasi fires a rifle and kills two employees outside CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia, USA
- January 26 - Václav Havel elected President of the Czech Republic

February

- February 8 - General Motors sues NBC after Dateline NBC allegedly rigged two crashes showing that some GM pickups can easily catch fire if hit in certain places. NBC settles the lawsuit the following day.
- February 11
- Janet Reno is selected by President Clinton as US Attorney General.
- February 12 - 11-year-old boys Robert Thompson and John Venables kill 2-year-old James Bulger in Liverpool.
- February 17 - Ferry in Haiti sinks - 285 survivors of maybe 1500 passengers
- February 23 - Gary Coleman wins a $1,280,000 lawsuit against his parents.
- February 26 - World Trade Center bombing: In New York City, a van bomb parked below the North Tower of the World Trade Center goes off, killing 6 and injuring over a thousand.
- February 28 - Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents raid the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas with a warrant to arrest cult leader David Koresh on federal firearms violations. Four agents and five Davidians die in the raid and a 51-day standoff begins.

March

- March - First issue of Wired magazine.
- March 4 - Authorities announce the capture of suspected World Trade Center bombing conspirator Mohammad Salameh
- March 9 - Rodney King testifies at the federal trial of four Los Angeles, California police officers accused of violating King's civil rights when they beat him during an arrest
- March 11 - Janet Reno is confirmed by the United States Senate and sworn-in the next day becoming the first female Attorney General of the United States
- March 12 - Several bombs explode in Bombay, India killing about 300 and injuring hundreds more. See Bombay bombings (1993)
- March 12 - North Korea nuclear weapons program: North Korea says that it plans to withdraw from the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and refuses to allow inspectors access to nuclear sites
- March 13 - The Great Blizzard of 1993 strikes the eastern U.S., bringing record snowfall and other severe weather all the way from Cuba to Québec
- March 16 - The blizzard is reported to have killed 184, including many surprised and stranded people along the Appalachian Trail
- March 20 - Warrington bomb attacks: IRA bomb explodes in Warrington Town Centre and kills two children, Johnathan Ball and Tim Parry
- March 27 - Jiang Zemin becomes President of the People's Republic of China.
- March 28 - Gaullists win legislative election in France and Édouard Balladur becomes prime minister of France.
- March 31 - A bug in a program written by Richard Depew sends an article to 200 newsgroups simultaneously. The term spamming is coined by Joel Furr to describe the incident.

April

- April - The Kuwaiti government claims to uncover an Iraqi assassination plot against former US President George H. W. Bush shortly after his visit to Kuwait. Two Iraqi nationals, caught with smuggled hashish and alcohol inside Kuwait, confess to driving a car-bomb into Kuwait on behalf of the Iraq Secret Service [http://www.newyorker.com/archive/content/?020930fr_archive02]
- April 6 - Russian nuclear accident at Tomsk 7
- April 6 - HMS Richmond launched for the Royal Navy
- April 7 - Attack submarine ex-Queenfish completes being recycled
- April 10 -ANC activist Chris Hani assassinated in South Africa
- April 22 - In Washington, DC, the Holocaust Memorial Museum is dedicated
- April 22 - Murder of Stephen Lawrence, London, UK
- April 23 - WHO declares tuberculosis a Global Emergency
- April 24 - Bishopsgate Bomb explodes in the City of London - 1 dead, 50 injured
- April 30 - The World Wide Web was born at CERN

May

- May 1 - Former prime minister of France Pierre Bérégovoy commits suicide
- May 1 - A Tamil Tigers suicide bomber assassinates President Ranasinghe Premadasa of Sri Lanka
- May 24 - Eritrean independence
- May 27 - A car bomb in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence - 5 dead - Mafia suspected

June

- June 6 - Mongolia holds its first direct presidential elections
- June 8 - Assassination of Rene Bousquet, the Vichy France police chief, at his Paris home
- June 9 – Los Angeles Police Department raids the home of Hollywood Madame Heidi Fleiss
- June 9 - Montreal Canadiens win their 24th Stanley Cup
- June 14? - Tansu Ciller becomes prime minister of Turkey
- June 18 - Iraq disarmament crisis: Iraq refuses to allow UNSCOM weapons inspectors to install remote-controlled monitoring cameras at two missile engine test stands.
- June 22 - Japan's New Party Sakigake breaks away from the Liberal Democratic Party.
- June 23 - Lorena Bobbitt cuts off the penis of her husband John Wayne Bobbitt.
- July 23 - Candelaria massacre - police shoot number of street kids in Candelaria Church in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- June 8 - In Paris, Christian Didier breaks into the home of Rene Bousquet, banker and former Vichy France administrator and shoots him dead
- June 22 - Unabomber bomb injures Charles Epstein in Tiburon, California
- June 24 - Unabomber bomb injures computer scientist David Gelernter in Yale University
- June 25 - Kim Campbell becomes Canada's nineteenth and first female Prime Minister
- June 27 - US President Bill Clinton orders a cruise missile attack on Iraqi intelligence headquarters in the Al-Mansur District, Baghdad, in response to the attempted assassination of former U.S. President George H. W. Bush during his visit to Kuwait in mid-April
- June 27 - In Bad Kleinen, Germany, GSG-9 troopers arrest terrorists Birgit Hogefeld and Wolfgang Grams

July

- July 1 - Gian Luigi Ferry shoots 8 and injures 6 in "Pettit and Martin" law firm in San Francisco, then shoots himself
- July 5 - Iraq disarmament crisis: UN inspection teams leave Iraq. Iraq then agrees to UNSCOM demands and the inspection teams return
- July 12 - A magnitude 7.8 earthquake off Hokkaido, Japan launches a devastating tsunami, killing 202 on the small island of Okushiri, Hokkaido
- July 20 - White House deputy counsel Vincent W. Foster Jr commits suicide in Virginia
- July 23 - Candelaria Massacre ? Brazilian police officers kill 8 street kids in Rio de Janeiro
- July 29 - The Israeli Supreme Court acquits accused Nazi death camp guard John Demjanjuk of all charges and he is set free.
- July 31 - Windows NT 3.1 has been released with the support of NTFS file system.

August

- August 4 - A federal judge sentences LAPD officers Stacey Koon and Laurence Powell to 30 months in prison for violating motorist Rodney King's civil rights
- August 6 - Louis Freeh is confirmed by the United States Senate to be the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
- August 9 - King Albert II of Belgium is sworn into office nine days after the death of his brother, King Baudouin
- August 21 - NASA loses radio contact with the Mars Observer orbiter three days before the spacecraft is scheduled to enter orbit around Mars

September

Mars and Israeli prime minister