YUSHIN

The Cabinet of
Park Chung Hee

Topic: The Yushin Constitution Crisis, 1972

BACKGROUND GUIDE

Committee Profile

In October 1972, South Korean President Park Chung Hee shocked the nation by declaring martial law, dissolving the National Assembly, suspending portions of the constitution, and unveiling the new Yushin Constitution—a sweeping political restructuring that granted him near complete executive authority. Supporters argued that strong leadership was necessary to protect South Korea from communist threats, maintain political stability, and continue the country's rapid economic development. However, critics viewed the Yushin system as the death of modern Korean democracy. As members of Park's Blue House Cabinet and the influential figures surrounding the regime, delegates will find themselves at the center of one of the most consequential political crises in modern Korean history. Faced with growing student demonstrations, labor unrest, media censorship, KCIA surveillance operations, and persistent fears of North Korean aggression, delegates must balance competing priorities of national security, economic modernization, political legitimacy, and personal ambition. Will the Yushin regime successfully consolidate authoritarian control and ring in an era of stability and growth, or will mounting opposition, internal rivalries, and democratic resistance fracture the fragile government from within?

Committee Chair

  • University of California, Los Angeles

    Paige Kim is a fourth-year student at the University of California, Los Angeles, currently majoring in English. She was born and raised in Southern California and is proud to say that her family has been there for five generations, as she believes it is one of the best places to grow up. She first got involved in Model United Nations her freshman year of high school, marking this year as her eighth year in MUN. She currently serves on the Executive Board for MUN at UCLA and staffs both their high school and collegiate conferences. This is her first time staffing for PacMUN, and she is more enthusiastic than ever to be able to take her MUN experience as far as it will take her.

Crisis Director

  • University of California, Los Angeles

    Kaylan So (she/they) is a University of California, Los Angeles alum with a degree in Political Science and Cognitive Science. Born and raised in the Bay Area, Kaylan first got involved in Model United Nations in high school and has since remained deeply engaged in the activity throughout college. She has participated as a delegate, Chair, and crisis staffer for several years. This year marks Kaylan’s second time staffing PacMUN (first being PacMUN XIV’s Samsung Board of Directors) and her ninth year participating in MUN overall.