Goh Kun

Goh Kun
고건
President of South Korea Acting
In office March 12, 2004 – May 14, 2004
Preceded by	Roh Moo-hyun
Succeeded by	Roh Moo-hyun (Reinstated)
31st and 36th Prime Minister of South Korea
In office March 4, 1997 – March 3, 1998
President	Kim Young-sam Kim Dae-jung
Preceded by	Lee Soo Sung
Succeeded by	Kim Jong-pil
In office February 26, 2003 – May 25, 2004
President	Roh Moo-hyun
Preceded by	Kim Suk Soo
Succeeded by	Lee Hun Jai (Acting) Lee Hae Chan
22nd and 31st Mayor of Seoul
In office December 5, 1988 – December 27, 1990
Preceded by	Kim Yong-rae
Succeeded by	Park Seh-jik
In office July 1, 1998 – June 30, 2002
Preceded by	Cho Soon Kang Duk-ki (Acting)
Succeeded by	Lee Myung-bak
Personal details
Born	(1938-01-02) January 2, 1938 Keijo, Japanese Korea (now Seoul, South Korea)
Political party	Democratic Justice (1980-1990) Democratic Liberal (1990-1995) Democratic (1998-2007)
Signature

Goh Kun
Hangul	고건
Hanja	高建
Revised Romanization	Go Geon
McCune–Reischauer	Ko Kŏn

Goh Kun (Hangul: 고건, Hanja: 高建, born January 2, 1938) is a South Korean politician. He served as Prime Minister of South Korea from 1997 to 1998 and from 2003 to 2004. In his more recent term, he assumed the role of interim President following President Roh Moo-Hyun's impeachment, from March 12, 2004 until May 14, 2004 when the South Korean Constitutional Court overturned the impeachment decision and restored Roh's powers as President. He is known as a solid, hardworking civil servant. One of Goh Kun's nicknames is "Mr. Stability," reflecting his ability to survive changes of government and other political upheavals.

Career

Goh was a Minister during the 1980s, and then Mayor of Seoul from 1988 to 1990 (appointed) and from 1998 to 2002 (elected).

He resigned from the office of Prime Minister on May 24, 2004 after refusing to comply with the President's request to replace cabinet members.

In June 2006, Goh announced his candidacy for the presidential race.

On January 16, 2007, he announced that he would no longer be a candidate for the Korean Presidential Elections and that he would retire from political life.

Yet on December 21, 2009, Goh Kun was named head of social unity council by President Lee Myung-bak.

See also

• Lee Myung-bak
• List of Korea-related topics
• Politics of South Korea
• Yun Posun

External links

• "Goh Attends Symposium for Formation of New Party" - JoongAng Daily (September 12, 2005)
• "Constitutional Court Reinstates South Korea's Impeached President" - NY Times (May 14, 2004)
• "North Korea Appeals for Help After Railway Explosion" - NY Times (April 24, 2004)
• "3,000 Casualties Reported in North Korean Rail Blast" - NY Times (April 23, 2004)
• "Impeachment Case to Go Forward in Seoul" - NY Times (April 17, 2004)
• "Bullet Train Remakes Map of South Korea" - NY Times (April 2, 2004)
• "Acting President Goh Kun Holds First Cabinet Meeting" - Chosun Ilbo (March 15, 2004)
• "A Steady Hand Promises Calm Amid the Furor In South Korea" - NY Times (March 14, 2004)
• "President's Impeachment Stirs Angry Protests in South Korea" - NY Times (March 13, 2004)
• "Goh Says Firmer Stance Against North to Stay" - Chosun Ilbo (May 19, 2003)
• "Korea Can't Afford to Cop Out on Corporate Reform" - Bloomberg Businessweek (March 30, 2003)
• "Threats and Responses: Seoul; Musing on an Exodus of G.I.'s, South Korea Hails U.S. Presence" - NY Times (March 8, 2003)
• "South Korea's New President Gets His Choice for Prime Minister" - NY Times (February 27, 2003)
• "Goh Kun" - Bloomberg Businessweek (July 1, 2001)
• "Seoul's Web of Anti-Correption" - Bloomberg Businessweek (June 24, 2001)