A welcoming parade in Busan by the US Army in 1945 [Photo=Korean Film Archive]

In August 1945, liberation was a blessing, but also a void. The period of time until order was established in the place of a vanished nation is always dangerous.

During this interim period, the first and decisive error committed by the Korean left, particularly the faction that would later be called the "pro-North left," was the misperception of North Korea as "progressive." This erroneous judgment was the starting point for the political and moral downfall that would span the subsequent 80 years.

Immediately after liberation, the northern part of the Korean Peninsula was placed under Soviet military administration (1945-1948). The Soviet army quickly seized control of the administrative, security, and propaganda systems centered in Pyongyang and prominently introduced Kim Il-sung in October 1945. Kim Il-sung was portrayed as a symbol of anti-Japanese armed struggle, but his actual power was shaped by Soviet military rule and its political backing.

In 1946, the Provisional People's Committee for North Korea was established, and land reform and the nationalization of enterprises were carried out in a short period. These radical measures gave the South Korean left a schematic impression that "the North was progressive, implementing reforms, while the South was reactionary, bound by vested interests."

Kim Il-sung Seized Control of the North... The Problem Was the Nature of Power

The issue was not the speed or form, but the nature of power. The reforms carried out in the North were not premised on pluralistic consensus or citizens' freedoms. Opposition factions were purged, and freedom of the press and association was not permitted.

Between 1946 and 1948, a one-party communist system was effectively completed in the North, and power began to concentrate in the hands of Kim Il-sung personally with the establishment of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in September 1948. Despite this, the South Korean left mistook this system for "not an incomplete democracy, but a completed progressive system."

There were two underlying reasons for this misconception. First, the anger stemming from the colonial experience clouded their judgment. Simply because they had opposed Japanese imperialism, authoritarian rule and violent purges were dismissed as "matters of process."

Second, there was a simplification of ideology. As long as the labels of anti-imperialism, anti-Americanism, and anti-capitalism were attached, the suppression of freedom and the annihilation of human rights were pushed aside. The habit of judging progress not by its outcome but by its intent solidified at this time.

The Left Embraced North Korea as a Progressive Model

In South Korea, confusion and conflict continued under the US military government (1945-1948). As left-right confrontation, economic hardship, and security instability overlapped, some on the left envied the "order" in the North. However, that order came at the price of freedom.

The North quickly became a system where power could not be changed through elections, and criticism of power soon became a crime against the state. The choice to embrace North Korea as a model for progress, while ignoring this fact, became the decisive reason why the Korean left distanced itself from democracy thereafter.

After 1948, there were several opportunities to correct this misperception. The Korean War (1950-1953) clearly demonstrated the nature of power in that system.

Despite this, some sought to obscure responsibility for the North Korean invasion or explained the violence as a "historical inevitability." The attitude of not acknowledging the initial misjudgment led to even greater distortions. Once something was labeled "progressive," it was never re-examined, no matter how much evidence accumulated.

Progress is a direction of change, not a license for a particular regime. A system that lacks freedom and responsibility, checks and balances on power, and the rights of citizens is not progressive, regardless of the reforms it undertakes.

The judgment that mistook North Korea for progressive immediately after liberation was not simply a limitation of the era, but a choice that prioritized conviction over facts. Unless this choice is reflected upon, the language of the pro-North left will always fail to explain reality and will be doomed to repeat its failures.

Poet, Historian & Philosopher Researcher

◆ Songsan (송산)

A poet and researcher of history and philosophy, he previously served as a director at the Syngman Rhee Institute and currently works as a research advisor for the Korean Modern and Contemporary History Research Society and as the representative of the philosophical forum Lyceum. He has published four poetry collections and co-translated "The Heroes of Chosin Reservoir." Songsan is a pen name.