4월 혁명과 한국의 민족주의

Abstract

This paper deals with the nationalistic ideas of the April Revolution in 1960. The April Revolution had important meanings in Korea nationalism history. Before 1945, the task of Korean modern nationalism was the construction of an independent democratic nation. After Liberation from Japan imperialism, Korea was divided into two nations by U.S.A and U.S.S.R. The main task was changed to the reunification of homeland. But the Rhee Syngman Government suppressed the democratic rights of the people and nationalistic ideas in reunification movements. The April Revolution, crashing the Rhee’s dictatorship, recalled the reunification desire of the Korean people to life. It was the revival of the Korean modern nationalism. The April Revolution was developed in three phases. The first phase was the student resistance movement against the dictator Rhee Syngman. It was the biggest part of the Revolution. It was supported by the opposition parties, the soldier, the intelligentsia, the citizen, the peasant, and the worker. The student acted as the leader of Korean nationalism and was recognized as the representative of all Koreans. Therefore the Rhee’s dictatorship was collapsed and the democratic government was established. The political democracy was fulfilled by the student power. The second phase was the economic independence movement by students. Chang Myun Government, the new democratic government, signed an economic agreement between Korea and America. The student protested the government that the economic sovereign of Korea was transferred to America by signing the agreement. This campaign was recognized as an economic independence movement which inherited the independence movement against Japanese colonial rule. But this was not supported by Korean people who was in poverty and desired an economic support. The student thought that North Korea would be good supporter instead of America. Therefore this economic independence movement was changed to the reunification movement. The reunification movement was the third phase of the Revolution. The student thought that the poverty of Korea was originated by the division of national economy. And they thought that the division of homeland gave rise to the national tragedy like Korean War. It was against the new democratic government which adopted the anti-communism line in reunification policies. And the radical students were opposed by the opposition parties and the moderate intelligentsia. The reunification of Korea was an international affair. It was the denial of the cold war system which the U.S.A. and the U.S.S.R had made after the Second World War. The radical students who tried to make a direct dialogue with the North were isolated from Korean people. Korean people had not forgotten the tragedy of Korean War yet. In these situations, the April Revolution was replaced by the Military Coup in May, 1961. The main campaign of the Military Coup was the anti-communism. In the development of the April Revolution, three nationalistic ideas was expressed by the revolutionary students, parties and intelligentsia. The idea of national justice was the main concept of revolution in the first phase. The revolutionary group appealed to the value of national justice and human nature in the democratic movement against the dictatorship. They thought that they inherited the sprit of independence and nationalistic justice of the patriotic martyrs of the country. The democratic movement was depended upon the historical consciousness. And it was developed for the value of national justice. In the economic independence movement, the second phase of the Revolution, the value of national independence was expressed. Korea’s economic liberation from America’ aid was recognized as a national independence. This leaded to the idea of reunification of the homeland. In the campaign of dialogue between the South and the North, third phase, the nationalistic identity was stressed by the radical students. They said that the South and the North were the same nation and had the same ancestors. They thought that the reunification would be good for nation welfare by mutual aid. In the period of April Revolution, the democratic value was changed to the nationalistic value. But the cold war system, which was made by the two strong country, the U.S.A and the U.S.S.R, was the obstacle which the Korean nationalism was not able to overcome. So the April Revolution was interrupted by the Military Coup that went along with the cold war system.