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South Korea, the United States and Emergency Powers During the Korean Conflict

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 March 2025

Su-kyoung Hwang
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Summary

This essay is a comparative legal study of the use by the United States and South Korea of state of emergency powers before and during the Korean War. Beginning with the violent suppression of the Cheju Uprising in 1948, a succession of states of emergency was proclaimed in South Korea and the United States throughout the Korean conflict (1948-1953). The essay examines the context in which these emergency laws were conceived and their relationship to state-sponsored mass violence against the civilian population.

Keywords

Korean warstate of emergencyCheju UprisingSyngman RheeHarry Truman
Type
Research Article
Information
Asia-Pacific Journal , Volume 12 , Issue 5 , January 2014 , e1
Copyright
Copyright © The Authors 2014

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