Taiwan and Korea: Two Paths to Modern Democracy

In 1949, Chiang Kai-shek’s government fled to a small island. Within decades, that island became one of Asia’s richest democracies. Across the sea, Korea took a harder road. It went from Japanese colony to war to two rival states.

In this lesson, we follow Taiwan from martial law to democracy. We also follow Korea from 1910 to the Korean War, and South Korea’s rise under Park Chung-hee. Then we see how both places became democracies in the late 1980s.

1Why did Chiang Kai-shek’s government move to Taiwan?

The Nationalists lost the civil war to the Communists. In 1949, their government fled to Taiwan. They still called it the Republic of China. They claimed to be the real government of all China.

They did not arrive empty-handed. They carried gold, silver and foreign currency. Many scholars, books and art treasures from the National Palace Museum crossed the sea too.

Taiwan had suffered violence before they came. In 1947, the Nationalist government put down an uprising, known as the February 28 incident. Memories of it shaped Taiwan’s politics for decades.

Martial law was in force from 20 May 1949 to 15 July 1987. It lasted over 38 years. Opposition parties were banned, and many critics were jailed.

• 1949: Nationalists retreat to Taiwan.
• They took gold and Palace Museum treasures.
• 1947: the February 28 incident.
• Martial law: 1949 to 1987.

2How did Korea come under Japan and then get divided?

Japan took control of Korea step by step. It forced Emperor Gojong to step down in 1907. In 1910, it formally annexed Korea. Five centuries of Joseon rule ended.

Japanese rule lasted until 1945. Colonial officials pushed Koreans to adopt Japanese names and the Japanese language. Many Koreans were also made to work for Japan’s war effort.

When Japan surrendered in 1945, the Allies needed a plan. The United States proposed a dividing line at the 38th parallel. Soviet troops took the north. American troops took the south.

The two zones did not reunite. In 1948, they became two states. South Korea and North Korea each claimed the whole peninsula.

• 1910: Japan annexes Korea.
• 1945: Japan surrenders. Korea split at the 38th parallel.
• Soviets in the north. Americans in the south.
• 1948: two rival states.

3How did land reform help Taiwan grow?

Taiwan’s new rulers began with the farms. In 1949, they capped rents at 37.5 per cent of the crop. From 1951, public land was sold to tenant farmers.

The biggest step began in 1953. It was called “Land to the Tiller”. Large holdings were broken up and passed to tenant farmers. Landlords were paid back, partly with state-owned companies.

Farmers now kept more of what they grew. That helped spread income more evenly. Later, from the 1960s, Taiwan built many small export factories. Electronics and textiles became major products.

• 1949: rents capped at 37.5%.
• 1953: Land to the Tiller.
• From the 1960s: export factories.

4What was the Korean War?

On 25 June 1950, North Korea invaded the South. The United Nations Security Council backed South Korea. A US-led force pushed north. In October, Chinese troops crossed the Yalu River to support the North.

The front moved back and forth. By mid-1951, fighting settled near the 38th parallel. Talks dragged on for two more years.

On 27 July 1953, an armistice was signed. It created a buffer zone between the two sides. No peace treaty was ever signed. So the two Koreas remain technically at war.

• 25 June 1950: North Korea invades.
• October 1950: China enters the war.
• 27 July 1953: armistice, not a peace treaty.

5How did Park Chung-hee grow South Korea?

General Park Chung-hee seized power in a coup on 16 May 1961. He was elected president in 1963. His government pushed fast industrial growth.

It favoured large business groups called chaebol. Samsung and Hyundai grew in this way. Cheap credit helped them expand into factories and ships.

On 22 April 1970, Park launched the Saemaul Undong, or New Village Movement. It aimed to modernise rural life. In 1972, he declared martial law and introduced the Yushin Constitution. It gave him near-total power.

In 1979, Park was shot by Kim Jae-gyu, the head of his own intelligence agency. His long rule ended there.

• 16 May 1961: Park’s coup.
• Support for chaebol: Samsung, Hyundai.
• 1970: Saemaul Undong. 1972: Yushin.
• 1979: Park is assassinated.

6How did Taiwan and Korea become democracies?

Taiwan changed first at the top. President Chiang Ching-kuo lifted martial law on 15 July 1987. Opposition parties could now form. The president was still chosen indirectly. Lee Teng-hui, the first president born in Taiwan, became the first elected directly, in March 1996.

South Korea changed through the street. On 10 June 1987, the military government named Roh Tae-woo as the next president. Mass protests followed until 29 June. The government agreed to direct presidential elections.

Both places have since held competitive elections. These elections have brought changes of government. That is a mark of a working democracy.

• 15 July 1987: Taiwan ends martial law.
• March 1996: Taiwan’s first direct presidential election.
• 10 to 29 June 1987: South Korea’s June protests.
• Result: direct elections for president.

7What were the Four Asian Tigers?

The Four Asian Tigers are Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan. Between the early 1950s and the 1990s, they industrialised fast. They also kept very high growth rates.

The boom hit a bump in 1997. The Asian financial crisis began in Thailand in July. It spread across East and Southeast Asia. South Korea was among the countries badly hit. Recovery in 1998 and 1999 was quick.

• Tigers: Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan.
• Japan is not one of them.
• 1997: Asian financial crisis began in Thailand.

8What are the exam traps?

• Taiwan’s retreat was 1949. Korea’s division was 1945. Different causes.
• The Korean War began in 1950, not 1945.
• The war ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty.
• Taiwan ended martial law in 1987. Its first direct presidential election came in 1996.
• The Four Tigers do not include Japan or China.