ABSTRACT
On V-J Day, August 15, 1948, the people of South Korea heard General Douglas MacArthur acclaim the passing of government from American into Korean hands and Syngman Rhee as the first President accept authority for the new government. At American request, the United Nations established a Temporary Commission on Korea which “observed” elections held in South Korea on May 10, 1948. In North Korea, the Soviet Union boycotted the American plan to bring a government into being through the intercession of the United Nations. Active support of separate elections came only from rightist groups, particularly the organization of Dr. Rhee, the Society for the Rapid Realization of Korean Independence and the Han’guk Democratic Party headed by Kim Songsoo. The American command and the South Korean Interim Government described the elections as a great victory for democracy and a repudiation of Communism.
