JOHN OH

In: PS: political science & politics, Band 44, Heft 1, S. 165-166

Abstract

The passing of John Kie-chang Oh is a vivid reminder of how much political science is driven by political responsibility. As a young man in Seoul, John Oh found himself at the center of the great upheaval that was the Korean War. His enrollment in law at the prestigious Seoul National University was cut short, and the prospect of a career in law and politics was put permanently on hold. Even worse, as he recalled, he could not depart from the city, as he was recovering from an appendectomy. The bright optimism of a 20-year-old had been shattered on that September morning in 1950, as he suddenly found himself on the run in his own native land.