Good Luck in Moscow

Returning to my hometown brought back many memories but my work in bringing Taekwondo to the world was not done. I delivered two ten-hour seminars over two days in Pyong-yang before heading to Moscow.

I sat thinking on the plan, realizing that I had been flying on North Korean airplanes for eleven years. It was expensive – a ticket from Toronto to Beijing was cheaper than from Pyong-Yang to Moscow. It also had to be purchased in American dollars.

While in Moscow, I dropped in on Colonel Jung-Chan Kim, the North Korean military attaché. He had good news for me. “My sources tell me that the Soviets are willing to implement ITF Taekwondo teaching into their training program,” he said. “They chose your version because you are the founder. It will be taught to the entire army.”

There was an element of pride in the decision. The military was an incubator for Olympic medalists in the country and they realized that civilian practitioners were far more advanced than their military counterparts at that stage.

Very pleased, I told them how I managed to build Taekwondo in the South Korean military and suggested that an instructor-training course could be scheduled for that very summer.

I returned to my travels, heading to Greece and the Netherlands for more seminars. While in transit, I was informed that I had a meeting scheduled with the Soviet Union’s Minister of Defense. I had a scheduling conflict, so I could not meet him at the appointed time.

In that case, I was lucky. A week later, he was fired for trying to kidnap Premier Mikhail Gorbachev. ITF Taekwondo would probably not be as prosperous in Russia today if it was associated with kidnappers.

Opinions on Defence Policy

When I returned to Toronto, I heard echoes of the complaints in Korea, where they wanted American troops to leave.

This concept was unimaginable before the 1980s. Ever since Korea was liberated from Japan, the American military had a significant presence on the peninsula. They had also worked closely with military dictators, training them and helping to identify persons who threatened the regime. The Americans never worried about Korea they way they had, for example, the Vietnamese.

Democracy and Korean unification always remained outside the scope of the US military. In terms of supporting those two goals, American influence might arguably have been worse than that of colonial Japan.

After the assassination of Jung-Hee Park in 1979, Korean Canadians assembled to demonstrate in favour of amendments to the Korean constitution. At the time, I also suggested to family and friends that we should also protest the American presence in our home. We carried this message beside the American consulate in Toronto.

I am fully opposed to the unlimited stationing of the US Army in Korea as a matter of American defence policy. I like America and its democratic system and I hope that Korea might have a similar political system in place once Korea is unified. I feel that the world will be a more peaceful place with a united Korea supporting our partners.

Turning Away from the USA

Doo-Hwan Jun “won” his presidency with only 36 per cent of the vote. I was disappointed with the opposition leaders, who split the vote. Both were named Kim.

In Seoul, protestors filled the streets, chanting “down with the military dictator’s regime. They were mainly college students but people were tired of the brutal suppression under Jun. He faced a future where he would have to flee abroad or be attacked by an angry mob.

Apparently. Jun was preparing to move his family to Australia. Publicly, he was facing the protestors with promises of releasing political prisoners, making the government more democratic and a series of policy announcements in time for the presidential elections.

Unfortunately, the opposition did not hold firm on demands for Jun’s resignation. It was the clearest way to end corruption. In that situation, Korea would be free to resolve its economic and political issues. Both Kims applauded Jun’s new government agenda and he was allowed to serve out his presidential term.

In his stead, Jun nominated Tae-Woo Roh as his successor. As long as the opposition was divided, the president of Korea would be backed by a military dictatorship.

That was the story of the Two Kims – focused on competing with each other while the military dictatorship continued to corrupt the government and oppress the citizenry.

Things got worse for the opposition. In 1980, Jun sentenced Dae-Joong Kim to death, finding him guilty of fomenting civil war; Korean democrats around the world were quite distressed.

Around that time, I was visited by one of my CIA contacts. He was also a 6th Dan black belt. In our conversation, I criticized the U.S. position regarding Dae-Joong Kim. My friend was certain that Kim would be brought to the United States.

He was right. After a series of prison transfers, Kim was brought to the U.S. Still, it appeared that our one-time savior was now supporting the military regime with American troops stationed in Korea. It was at this time that public sentiment in Korea started to turn away from the United States.

Tricks by the KCIA

In 1982, the IOC was preparing to respond to the ITF’s request to be recognized alongside the WTF for the Olympics. In June of that year, I met with the Chairman of the IOC program committee in Budapest. At the time, he told me that only three countries supported our application and 41 countries supported the WTF. He suggested that we start canvassing for votes.

My first stop was Poland, where the WTF had no presence and I first taught instructors in 1975. Gonansky, the local instructor, had been approved as a first-degree black belt by myself but as a third degree black belt by the WTF. The support for the WTF, however, was a government employee in the Polish Department of Athletics. I resolved to focus on converting the socialist countries to my cause.

I also had to visit South America to promote the ITF. I took Jung-Tae Park with me. In Buenos Aires, the KCIA arranged for the local people to inspect us, especially our briefcases. They also asked the Argentine minister of Defense to pressure the owner of a local gym to forbid us from giving our seminar. They were telling the locals that I was a communist who was involved in a scheme to assassinate the Korean president.

We ended up having a practice in a downtown park. Four thousand people showed up. The Buenos Aires Chief of Police watched us and appeared to be touched by the scene. He permitted us to move to a municipal gym, allowing us to complete the seminar.

In Bogota, two policemen ransacked our bags. We were also questioned; leading them to conclude that the Korean embassy was misleading them. They promised to provide security to us for the rest of our visit and we completed our seminar.

In Panama, KCIA agents and local authorities greeted us. They put us in a car and drove us around Panama City and into the country. I kept my composure but worried about many possible outcomes. Finally, they stopped the car in the slums, where the local Military Intelligence Bureau was located.

They took our pictures and asked about our citizenship. Each time, I told them that I was Canadian. After an hour of waiting, they let us go, returning us to the airport. They let us sleep in the detention room for the night.

The Fate of Jung-Hee Park

Though I was consistent in my opposition to Jung-Hee Park, I was equally determined to spread Taekwondo throughout the world. In some countries, I was advised to focus on the art and not the politics. Argentina was such a place.

Visiting the country, I gave my standard presentation before letting the demonstration team show what they could do. Afterword, we went to a small Korean restaurant where we talked about the growth of Taekwondo. Many thought that it was well on its way to becoming an Olympic sport.

I was adamant that Taekwondo never be used for political purposes. Citing the KCIA’s efforts to kidnap Koreans in East Berlin, I stated that it was my personal responsibility to avoid having the art associated with political thugs. Most of us thought that it would be easier if Jung-Hee Park were no longer president of South Korea.

That day, we were heading to the suburbs of Buenos Aires and stopped at an outdoor restaurant. The owner came over to us, smiling broadly. He announced that Jung-Hee Park had just been assassinated and offered us handshakes of congratulation.

This was unbelievable news. General Jae-Gyu Kim, director of the KCIA, had killed the president. A close ally had killed Jung-Hee Park. The world had changed over night, especially for me.

Those who had been cold to me in the past offered their apologies. Many instructors who left the ITF called on me to pay their respects. In Korea, many organizations were inviting to come home.

At the same time, Korea fell into political chaos for a time. The military seized power and had Kim arrested. We sent a letter urging cooperation and a return to democratic constitutional government.

Complaints About the KCIA

At the end of November, Chairman Jung-Hee Park came for dinner at the army commander’s residence in Won-Ju City. It was an occasion where some attendees might complain about the overbearing actions of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency (KCIA).

People were saying that their actions were worse than those of the Kim or Rhee regimes. Nobody would say such things directly to Chairman Park.

I seated the chairman to the right of Im-Hwan Park, the commander of the First Army. The vice-commander entered the room and whispered something to the commander. He erupted. “What? I invited them here and they still can’t come in?” he shouted. “I am the commander of this area!”

Apparently, the KCIA would not allow some local barmaids to enter the proceedings even though they had been authorized by General Park.

I walked over to the Chairman and informed him of the situation. “The barmaids are shivering outside,” I told him. “Could you please call them in since the army commander’s orders mean nothing in his own region?”

I opened the door for others to complain about the KCIA. I told the Chairman about the rumors that all generals from the Northern provinces would be fired. Each commander in attendance had a personal story about run-ins with the KCIA. In response to the complaints, the Chairman suggested that he might replace the KCIA leader in the future, even though it was his brother-in-law.

The mood in the room turned very positive and everyone got intoxicated.

It got back to me later, however, that Jong-Pil Kim held a grudge against me. My life in the army was growing shorter as the list of my enemies grew longer.

I still had friends amongst the US military advisors. In 1962, the US 7th infantry division was going to be assigned under the operational command of my 6th corps. Despite protest from my own people, Lieutenant-General Harris assigned 100,000 soldiers in five divisions to me. It was the first time that a US Army division was assigned under the command of a Korean.

Jumbled Hierarchy

There were rumors that General Jahng was planning a revolt to counter Jung-Hee Park’s rise to power, but I knew nothing of it. I only knew that he was assembling reliable officers from his home province just to build his staff.

Park eventually arrested Jahng and made other moves to consolidate his power. First, he allied himself with former Japanese collaborators like General Yo-Chan Song, naming him Chief of Cabinet. Next, he allied himself with the Kyungsang and Choongchung provinces.

As for me, I was left on the sidelines during all of this maneuvering. Jung-Hee Park promoted Major-General Chang-On Choi, a loyalist, above me. A few days later, Park met with me and apologized for the “oversight”. He asked me to be patient and promised that I would be promoted in the future.

As a result, the former military hierarchy was completely jumbled. Many generals who had skipped through the ranks without experience were now reporting to junta leaders who had not progressed beyond the level of Colonel.

I told Park directly “people are laughing at this nonsense. If you must have Colonels run things, I suggest that they retire from the military and work in civilian uniform.” I also recommended that soldiers remain separate from civilian industry, ensuring that they were not corrupted by the lure of easy money.

My greatest source of pride at this time was that I had finally established Taekwondo instruction sections in each unit under my command. My soldiers were trained for any emergency. Through the Ministry of Defense, I sent a memo to the entire military, asserting the obligation to train all soldiers in the art of Taekwondo. I also sent a letter to the International Military Sports Committee, introducing Taekwondo to them.

Bringing Taekwondo to America

In 1960, I was sent to the United States for a weapons course. The focus was on missiles like the Nike and the Hawk. As a result, we spent more time having field trips than classroom studies.

After the course ended in April, I went to see my friend Jhoon Rhee, who was teaching Taekwondo in San Antonio, Texas. In that era, it was difficult to reach such a remote place by plane.

I had many questions before I saw him. The big question was whether or not he was calling his art “Taekwondo”. As soon as I got off the plane, I asked him.

Rhee confessed that he was calling it “karate” because his students better knew the term. Realizing that he had learned the full techniques of Taekwondo before leaving Korea, I did not scold him.

That evening, forty students gathered to meet me in the practice hall of the local university. I took off my jacket and demonstrated the technical differences between karate and Taekwondo for about an hour.

At the end of the demonstration, the students asked me to inscribe the name of “Taekwondo” on their uniforms. I had to use permanent marker. I considered this day the first day that Taekwondo was brought to America. This is also why I consider Jhoon Rhee the first Taekwondo instructor in America.

Demonstration in Vietnam

In March 1959, we finally brought Taekwondo to Vietnam and Taiwan. These magnificent performances were designed to demonstrate the excellence of Korea’s five thousand-year cultural history.

The seeds of these performances were planted during a visit to Korea by President Ngo Dinh Diem of Vietnam in 1958. Witnessing a Taekwondo demonstration, Diem said, “This is why the Korean army is so strong.”

While the visit to Vietnam was being negotiated, Chiang Kai Shek of Taiwan was also approached for an invitation. Our unknown martial art was about to be introduced to the world.

I selected my team directly from the army ranks. We trained at army headquarters for two weeks.

We went to Saigon using Korean transport planes. We performed a day after our arrival before 360,000 spectators. The response was so positive that we extended our visit for another week.

At the military academy of Vietnam, the principal commented that he “couldn’t imagine that the human body was capable of producing such tremendous power.”

The next day we prepared to leave. I was surprised that the Vietnamese air force arranged for two C-47 transport planes for our demonstration team. Each plane was big enough to carry thirty soldiers. I asked the corps commander why they did so.

“The news articles made it sound like each of you must be as huge as a large rock,” he responded. “You break bricks with your bare hands and chop wooden boards with your fingertips. You need a big plane.”

He laughed.

Governor AT Nha Trang came to greet us and made a similar comment. “I thought that you would all be giants, but you are not so different from any of us. Where do you get your formidable power…from ginseng?”

Our Vietnam demonstrations left a lasting impression on the nation. In 1962, the Vietnamese government requested Taekwondo instructors before they officially asked for assistance from the Korean government. In the case of the Viet Cong, they were instructed to never approach a Korean soldier.

Accepting New Responsibility

Five months had passed after I finished the training program at the military college and I still did not have a new assignment. After six months, the authorities could discharge me and I could not appeal.

Finally, I was offered the job of Superintendent of the Army Reserve Forces. I was expected to turn it down. It was meant for a brigadier-general and there was nothing much to do. Even though I was a major general, I took the job on the advice of the military advisor, Houseman.

My office was in a shabby barracks in an army housing complex. Built by the Japanese, it appeared that the space had not been upgraded since the end of the war.

The duty of my office was to supervise the educational administration and budget of the reserve division and to serve as the headquarters for each Korean province. It was an important role that had been neglected. I resolved to make the office everything it could be.

While I rebuilt the dignity of that office, I also promoted the development of Taekwondo. I founded the Martial Arts Club of the General Army and formed a demonstration team with select instructors, some of them marines. I also founded the Korean Taekwondo Association.

On September 3 1959, thirteen members of our association gathered in the building of the Korean Amateur Athletic Association. We took a photo, inked a signboard and processed an application to join the larger Association.