After World War II Korea was controlled by the United States in the South and the Russians in the North. They were at a standstill in negotiations with each other. The South Koreans established its own democratic government in 1948 and North Korea started its own Communist government in 1948. In 1950, a war broke out in Korea, the United Nations stepped in to help the south, and the communist helped the north. In 1953, an truce was created that split the country in two.

In 1960, a period of civil rule was created after a student uprising. In 1961, a coup led by Park-Chung He started a 18-year dictatorship. In another coup in 1979, Chun Doo-hwan assumed control. In time, the military rule stopped and a democratic rule controlled South Korea. Since World War, their constitution has been ratified six times. After the 1996 constitutional ratification, the Korean government became known as The Sixth Republic. Members of The Sixth Republic serve four-year terms within their legislature of 299 seats.

South Korea’s economy became a very powerful in the 1990’s. They joined the OECD in 1996 and kept their economy strong through the weak Asian economy of the late 1990’s. Today South Korea is one of the leading innovators in technology and is constantly creating new ideas. To this day their has been talks about a unifying south and North Korea although their still has been no peace treaty signed. They continue to have a border dividing the country and still have conflicts over border crossings and defects.