Soldier. Politician. Patriot. The Biography of Kyung Soon Chang

By Christopher Schmitz and Kyung Soon Chang

General Chang saved South Korea from Communism. Twice.

 

May 16, 1961. General Chang made a decisive contribution to General Chung-hee Park's bloodless coup. The move saved his country from a collapse engineered by Communist sympathizers after President Syngman Rhee's resignation in 1960.

 

From 1963 through 1972, General Chang was Vice Speaker of the Korean National Assembly, under General Chung-hee Park, who became the President of South Korea in 1963. In that time, General Chang single-handedly saved his country from mortal danger by thwarting US National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger's covert operation to withdraw US troops from South Korea. Chang was the first person to detect the plan. It would have handed over South Korea to Communist China.

 

Accompanied only by his assistant, General Chang flew to America and crushed the attempt by informing and persuading, one by one, the US Congressional leadership against Kissinger.

 

Serving as Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, General Chang pioneered Korea's world-famous reforestation effort. As Minister of Agriculture and Forestry under General Park, General Chang initiated the wildly successful reforestation effort that eventually earned Korea the distinction of being "the only developing country in the world that has succeeded in reforestation since the Second World War," according to the 1982 report of FAO (UN Food and Agriculture Organization).

 

Buy Now and learn about one of the most interesting periods in South Korea's history from the perspective of one its most interesting men.

• Language: English
• Publisher: TreeShaker Books
• Release date: Jun 12, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223590224

Christopher Schmitz

Christopher Schmitz (M.A.), geb. 1988, ist wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter am Göttinger Institut für Demokratieforschung.

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Biography of Kyung Soon Chang

Kyung Soon Chang

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TreeShaker Books

Copyright © 2023 by Francis Chang

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Contents

Dedication

Looking Back on the Tumultuous Times I Lived Through

2.The Student Soldier Years

3.Fires of Korean War

4. 5.16 Military Revolution

5.Minister of Agriculture

6.General Secretary of Democratic Republican Party

7.Vice Speaker of Korean National Parliament

8.Diplomatic Activity

9.My Dream and Passion: the Korean Federation of Community Credit Cooperative

11.Judo and My Life

12.Episodes During the Military Years

13.Friends, Drink, and Life

In Memory of My Father

Chapter

My father did not dedicate his book to anyone, but I am positive that he would have dedicated the book to his mother, who prayed for him twice a day, ever since he was taken to fight in WWII until she passed away at 100 years old.

Francis S. Chang, Author's Daughter

Looking Back on the Tumultuous Times I Lived Through

We need our lifetime to learn how to live properly. Our lives are short because we waste our lives and thereby shorten our lives. As a young man, I read this statement given by a western politician, and it has become even more meaningful as my life is rapidly drawing to an end.

As I reminisce on my life, my days have been filled with ups and downs. My life has indeed been quite dynamic and tumultuous. As I have reached the age to think for myself, I pondered on my life goals and came up with the three main ones. The first life goal was to make my mother country strong, the second goal was to help farmers live comfortably, and the third goal was to reach the highest rank in Judo. I have placed the highest and utmost value on reaching these three goals.

Those who lived through the Colonial period under Imperial Japan (except for a handful of Koreans who were loyal to Imperial Japan) must have had a strong love for our mother country. Personally, the love of my motherland and the sorrow of living under the ruthless treatment of Koreans started early on.

Under Japanese occupation, I was arrested as a middle school student for lending a book to a fellow student whose affinity for Communism got him in trouble. For this crime, I was arrested, received water torture, and was ruthlessly beaten. As a young man, I was captured and sent to China to fight in World War II as a student soldier. These experiences made me even more adamant to help build a powerful motherland.

After our people won independence from Japanese occupation, I returned to Korea. Upon my return, I joined the Korean Army as an officer. Soon thereafter, the Korean War erupted on June 25, 1950.

I defended my country during the Korean War as a Regimental Commander and continued to do so after the cease-fire in 1953; I worked tirelessly to strengthen the Korean Military. After the April 19 Student Revolution, Korea was in chaos with unruly young college students controlling the land. To preserve the country and prevent a national safety crisis, I joined President Park and the Korean military.

I was born into a wealthy landowning family and grew up in an affluent household. Even though I was privileged enough to go to Seoul to attend middle school and was able to go abroad to study, I grew up watching many farmers struggling in poverty.

My second life goal became working to enable farmers to live in comfort and financial security without their rights being violated.

As the Revolutionary government embarked on creating a better Korea, I was appointed as the Minister of Agriculture. During my tenure, I was able to abolish high-interest loans for farmers. I used Chang Kyung Soon farming techniques to plant trees on bare mountains. My unique planting techniques met strong opposition, especially from the farming experts but I was confident that my techniques would work.

To everyone’s amazement, it worked better than even I expected. Its success created one of the most outstanding accomplishments in President Park’s reign--we were able to grow green mountains and green national land.

Additionally, we were able to overcome the famine called Barley Hill (farm hardship period). After the harvest in the fall, poor farmers ran out of rice and could not feed their families until the barley was harvested in the spring. Because of this, many people—especially the children—perished or suffered from poor nutrition. Barley Hill has been occurring throughout our country’s long history. With President Park’s support and dedication, we were able to put an end to Barley Hill in two years. We were able to develop a new breed of rice crop which was able to give double the amount of rice, and we managed to get rid of rats that were eating up the harvested rice.

During my time at the National Assembly, I firmly believed that Village Safe was the answer to save the poverty-stricken farmers in Korea and lay the financial foundation for Korea. This was modeled after the German Raiffeisen Bank which created German affluence after World War II. With this conviction, I worked tirelessly to establish Village Safe all over the country. I visited every place where the possibility of establishing Village Safe existed. Other politicians watched me pursue this fervent desire with a suspicion that I was secretly laying a foundation to run for the Presidency.

I am very pleased to know that I was able to be a part of the movement which helped to gather the National Fund. During the IMF (International Monetary Fund) crisis of 1997 in Korea, Village Safe was the only financial institution that survived without any external financial assistance. It has grown to 60 trillion won with 15,000,000 members.

As a politician and a military leader, I always remembered Zigong’s question to Confucius. When Zigong asked, What is the best way to govern a country? Confucius answered in three parts. He believed that there should be enough food to feed the people, that a governor should try to strengthen the military for national security so that the people feel safe and secure, and finally, that a governor must gain trust from the people. But if only one element can be achieved, trust is the most important element. I took his teachings into my heart and tried to live by it daily.

Lastly, Judo (Ju-soft, Do-way of life) and strong mental power trained by Judo have sustained me throughout my life. The value system I uphold and the general outlook toward life have been formulated by my training in Judo. Judo has been woven into every facet of my life and has become as natural as breathing and eating. Every decision I made in my life has come from Judo.

I was introduced to Judo quite accidentally while I was very sensitive and high-spirited. Immediately, I felt it was to be the guiding light of my life. I built up myself physically and mentally through the teaching of Judo and built a well-balanced character. The basis of Judo starts with being courteous and considerate to others. The essential part of teaching in Judo includes the soft overpowers the hard and real power behind subduing an opponent is using the force used by the opponent.

Fortunately, I met a great teacher with respectable character and I was able to live my life as a practitioner of Judo. I firmly believe that I have been able to deal with so many hardships and crises, as well as numerous conflicts and confrontations, using the teachings of Judo. I am thankful that I had the great fortune to live with Judo. I tribute my accomplishments and rewarding life to it.

I still begin my day practicing Judo. Then, I quietly meditate and contemplate on what I need to do and how I need to do it. I have lived a long and rich life, and I still strive to live a worthwhile life every day. I try every minute and every second left in me to tie up loose ends and remain a contributing member of society.

I thank everyone who helped me to publish my life story.

Dan Won, Kyung Soon Chang

Dan Won, Kyung Soon Chang

Dan Won, Kyung Soon Chang

Timeline of Kyung Soon Chang's Life

1922 born in Gim Je, Korea

1936 entered Baje Middle and high school

1941 went to Japan to study

1944 joined WWII as a student soldier

1946 teaching at North Chun Ju middle school

1948 joined Korean Army

1957 became Brigadier General

1961 Supreme Council for National Reconstruction, member of Steering committee

1961 Minister of Agriculture

1961 became Major General

1963 retired as Lieutenant general

1963 Secretary General of Democratic Republican Party

1963 Vice Speaker of National Assembly

1963 President of Korean-German Congressmen Association

1964 President of Korean Judo Association

1967 Vice President of the World Judo Association

1973 Advisor for Board of National Unification

1976 First Minister of Ministry without Portfolio

1998 Honorary chairman of Korean Judo grand master association

2002 Chairman of Korean Constitutional Assembly, Council of Elders

2002 Chairman of the National Movement of Freedom Protection

2003 Chairman of Korean Constitutional Assembly

2004 Judo 10th degree promotion

Also Authored: Theory of Agricultural cooperative

2022 Kyung Soon Chang passes at age 100

Part 1

2

The Student Soldier Years

Independence Army branch unit, left front is the author.

Independence Army branch unit, left front is the author.

Joining the Japanese Imperial Army as a Student Soldier

I have lived a long life that is riddled with many life-threatening events and intricate circumstances. My entire life certainly has not been that of a spectator, observing as history unfolds; I was thrust into a stormy ocean to fight the wild waves, and I had to painstakingly swim to reach the shore.

I will start with how I was forcibly taken to China to fight in World War II, as a student soldier of the Imperial Japanese Army, and had to endure a shameful period.

I had gone to Japan to study, but my true reason for going abroad was to train under renowned Judo teachers. I started Judo at the Bae Je Middle School. When I graduated, I was the only one who reached the level of Black Belt in 5 years at Bae Je Middle School. I was so enthralled with Judo at the time that I was determined to study under the best Judo teacher in Japan. So, in the spring of 1941, I got on a boat and headed to Japan.

I enrolled at university, but I was not interested in academics, so I did only the bare minimum to stay at the school. I spent all my spare time training for Judo at the Kang Do Kwan, which means ‘the place to teach the way to be a better human being through Judo.’ I lived in my Judo uniform, soaked in my sweat all day long.

My Judo teacher was Mahune, the number one Judo master in Japan at the time. Unlike other Japanese teachers, he did not discriminate against me for coming from a colony. He was only interested in me as his disciple; He seemed to appreciate my dedication and passion to learn Judo.

As I approached graduation, he called me into his office and asked me about my plans. I answered that I had to return home. He asked me if I wished to study Judo more. I replied, If I could study Judo I would be overjoyed. But I cannot ask for additional support from my parents. Soon thereafter, he found me a job.

I graduated from a university in Japan in March 1943. With the help of my Judo teacher, I was hired to work as a government employee for the Interior Department of Benefits for the Retirement Division. I became employed as a government worker and began supporting myself for the first time in my life.

My job was very unusual. Even though I was paid as a full-time employee, I was told to work only in the morning. My afternoons were free for me to do whatever I wanted. Every afternoon I went to Kang Do Kwan and trained in Judo.

I lived in a rental house called Sam Ho Kwan with two friends, Shin Do Whan and Oh Young Mo. We lived in the same room and trained together at the Kang Do Kwan. Mahune did not extend the same offer to my friends, and they returned to Korea after graduation. They were very envious of me.

My good fortune did not last long. As Tokyo was frequently bombed by US fighter planes, the Benefits Division was moved to the city of Adami. If I were to leave my job, I could not continue studying Judo. If I could not train for Judo, there would have been no other reason for me to stay in Japan. So, I decided to return home.

Then suddenly, unexpected help came my way. There was a woman who worked at the rental house. She was the niece of the owner. While her husband was at war, she was staying with her uncle and helping him run the rental house. She was a very quiet, polite person and I hardly knew her, but as she saw me packing, she approached me and asked whether I was interested in working at a factory. She said, Then, you don’t have to leave and you can continue your Judo training.

She told me that her other uncle owned a factory manufacturing supplies for the military. The company was called Aragawa and was located near Tokyo. She said if I wanted to work there, she would arrange with her uncle to allow me to work in the morning so I could continue practicing Judo in the afternoon. I unpacked immediately.

This factory was enormously large. It was so big that it could easily manufacture tanks. My first responsibility was making a water hole in a radiator. I made many mistakes, but gradually I was able to perform well.

One day, I received a telegram stating that I needed to return home immediately as my father was gravely ill. I was so shocked that I hurried to Shimonoseki Port and got on the first boat home, not realizing that it was the end of my three-year stay in Japan.

I arrived in Busan the next morning. As soon as I arrived, a Japanese detective accosted me and started to pressure me to join the Japanese military as a student soldier. He had sent the telegram and was waiting for me at the port. I told him that I was a disciple of Master Mihune and worked as a government employee. I had come to visit my family due to my father’s illness, but I had to return to Japan right after. He finally let me leave so I thought I was able to convince him.

After escaping this detective, I headed home. As I arrived home, I could not believe my eyes. My father was not ill. He was healthy and was working as usual. My father said, You are so one track-minded and foolish. Does your head work? Kim Je (my hometown) police had sent the telegram to get me to return so they could capture me and send me to China to fight in the war. There was another detective already waiting for me. As soon as I arrived home, I was pressured to join immediately and I could not get away from their grip.

I was permitted a day to visit my high school in Seoul and get advice from the headmaster. He sighed and said, I’m sorry but I cannot tell you anything. I already knew what he would say. I just wanted to visit my alma mater one last time because I knew it would not be easy to return home alive.

Everyone at home acted as if I had died already. I tried to tell myself that if it was my fate; there was nothing much I could do. So, I accepted my fate. It is my personality. I am not complicated. I simplify issues in front of me, and thereby I focus on the here and now.

I had to leave home to enlist on January 20, 1944, with another young man from my hometown whose name was Kwak Nam Ku. He and I trained in Judo together in Japan and he trained as a Sumo Wrestler as well. He was as big as an elephant and the only son of a widowed mother. As there was very little possibility of returning home alive, when we departed to join the war he was sobbing and kept looking back. I was annoyed by his crying, as he was about to make me cry. So, I told him to stop crying like a little girl. I regretted mocking him later on, but we were faced with an unknown, fear-ridden future which was too hard to bear for us at such a young age. We were only 21 years old.

Thus, we joined the Imperial Army to fight the enemy—who was not our enemy—forced by the real enemy we detested. The Japanese Imperial Army needed soldiers to fight the war, and at the same time they hoped to get rid of Korean intellectuals so that Korea would not have a chance as an independent nation. They enlisted only college students and graduates to fight in the war and named us Student Soldiers.

Rookie at the Military Education Bureau

In January 1944, I was assigned to the Imperial Japanese Military Regiment of 80. Everyone was vaccinated and received rifles, bullets, backpacks, and blankets upon arrival. We were to be sent to another location to receive the recruit training in either China or the Southern Islands. We kept hearing that everyone had perished in the Southern Islands due to relentless bombing by the US planes. We were praying that we would not be sent there.

By this time, Japan had already surrendered air and ocean power. So, we knew we were approaching the eleventh hour of the war. As the fight was so intense, we knew our chance of survival was even slimmer and we were fearful and apprehensive.

Even in this turbulent situation, I somehow had managed to accept my possible death. I attributed the calmness I maintained to the intense training I received in Judo. I met my good friends Kim Young Nam and Yoo Jae Young in the group, which gave me a sense of happiness and comfort.

About a week after we enlisted, we were awakened in the middle of the night and ordered to pack and gather at the parade grounds. Our fateful time had come. After everyone was checked, and the count of the student soldiers was completed, we were ordered to march toward the Dae Ku Train Station. As soon as we got on board, the train started to move without turning on any lights at all. There was no light inside the train and the train had turned off the headlights to avoid attention from the US military airplanes. They also had blocked all the windows so we could not see the direction we were going. In this pitch-dark train, we were being taken to a place where we would most likely perish. This was truly a terrifying situation. We were frozen with fear because we believed we would be killed in a few days.

We traveled for a long time, but the train did not stop. We figured that we were not going to Busan which was located not too far from Dae Ku. Since we did not go toward Busan, which was a seaport, we felt a sense of relief because that meant we were not going to be sent to the Southern Islands. We breathed a collective sigh of relief.

Around dawn, we arrived at the Seoul Station. Lights