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Academic Background

Period	Name of School	Major	Remarks
1946	Born in Gimhae, Gyeongsang-namdo
1959	Graduated from Daechang Primary School
1963	Graduated from Jinyoung Middle School
1966	Graduated from Busan Commercial High School

Personal History

Period	career history
1968	Army draftee service
1971	Honorable discharge from military service
1973	Married to Kwon Yang-suk
1975	Passed the National Bar Examination
1977	Served as judge at the Daejeon District Court
1978	Practicing attorney
1981	Began career as a human rights lawyer after defending a student involved in the Burim Incident in Busan
1984	Served as director of the Research Center for Environmental Pollution
1985	Served as executive director of the Busan Citizens Committee for Democracy
1987	Served as chairman and director of the Busan Headquarters of Citizens' Movement for a Democratic Constitution (Also became one of the leaders of the 1987 June Democratization Struggles); Arrested in connection with the illegal strikes of the Daewoo Shipping Workers Union and his attorney license was suspended
1988	Elected to the 13th National Assembly from Busan's Eastern District
1989	Served as member of the Special Committee Investigating Political Corruptions during the Fifth RepublicServed as member of the Labor Committee of the National Assembly
1990	Opposed the three-party merger between the ruling and two opposition parties; formed a splinter Democratic Party and served as director of planning and coordination of the newly-created party; Resigned National Assembly seat along with a group of sympathetic colleagues in protest against the ruling party's ramming of a broadcasting bill
1991	Led the campaign to unite the opposition forces (served as the leading negotiator of the talks to unite the opposition forces)
1992	Ran for the National Assembly seat in the Eastern District of Busan (unsuccessful)Led the election campaign for presidential candidate Kim Dae-jung
1993	Became the youngest member of the supreme council of the (United) Democratic Party
1995	Ran for mayor of Busan (unsuccessful)
1996	Ran for the National Assembly Seat in the Jongno District in Seoul (unsuccessful)
1997	Led the election campaign for Kim Dae-jung, presidential candidate of the National Congress for New Politics (NCNP); Served as an anchor of a SBS radio news program
1998	Elected to the 15th National Assembly in a by-election in Seoul's Jongno District (as an NCNP candidate); Served as an arbitrator in the labor-management dispute at the Hyundai Motor Company
1999	Gave up the chance to seek a National Assembly seat for a second term in the Jongno District in Seoul and chose to run for the National Assembly seat in Busan; Served as the head of the Committee for the Development of the Southeast Regions of the Millennium Democratic Party
2000	Ran for the National Assembly Seat in Busan (unsuccessful); Served as the minister of maritime affairs and fisheries (August 2000 - March 2001)
2001	Served as advisor and senior member of the Central Committee, the Millennium Democratic Party; Appeared in the commercial of the Daewoo Motors as the 154,451th supporter.
2002	Nominated as the presidential candidate of the Millennium Democratic Party in a national primary election system; Elected President of the Republic of Korea in the 16th Presidential election.
2009	Passed Away