Chung Un-chan | |
|---|---|
정운찬 | |
Cropped.jpg) | |
| Prime Minister of South Korea | |
| In office 29 September 2009 – 11 August 2010 | |
| President | Lee Myung-bak |
| Preceded by | Han Seung-soo |
| Succeeded by | Yoon Jeung-hyun(acting) Kim Hwang-sik |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1947-03-21)21 March 1947 (age 78) Gongju,southern Korea |
| Political party | Independent |
| Alma mater | Seoul National University (BA) Miami University (MA) Princeton University (PhD) |
| Profession | Economist Professor |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 정운찬 |
| Hanja | 鄭雲燦 |
| Revised Romanization | Jeong Unchan |
| McCune–Reischauer | Chŏng Unch'an |
Chung Un-chan (Korean: 정운찬; born March 21, 1947[1]) is a South Korean politician who served as theprime minister of South Korea from 2009 to 2010. He was a professor ofSeoul National University from 1978 to 2009, serving as the president of the university from July 2002 to July 2006. From 2018 to 2020, Chung also served as the 22nd commissioner of theKorea Baseball Organization.[2]
Prior to his appointment as Seoul National University president, Chung wasdean of thecollege ofsocial sciences in the first half of 2002. From 1993 to 1994, he was associate dean at the college. Chung was a visitingassociate professor at theUniversity of Hawaii in 1983, a visiting scholar at theLondon School of Economics from 1986 to 1987, and a visiting professor atRuhr-Universitat Bochum (Germany) in 1999. Chung earned aB.A. ineconomics at Seoul National University in 1970, and anM.A. in economics atMiami University (Ohio) in 1972. Chung received a Ph.D. in economics fromPrinceton University in 1978 after completing a doctoral dissertation titled "Toward a theory of the price setting banking firm."[3] In October 2004, Chung was awarded anhonorary degree in international education at theFar Eastern National University inVladivostok,Russia. Chung continues to write and conduct research inmacroeconomics andfinancial markets. He has numerous publications in both Korean and English.
Chung has held senior positions in government commissions and private research institutions. In 2002, Chung was Chairman of the Committee on National Pension Development. From 2000 to 2001, he served as Chairman of the Financial Development Committee at the Ministry of Finance and Economy. Since 1996, Chung has served as Director of the Suam Educational and Cultural Foundation. From 1998 to 2001, Chung was Director of the Korea Council of Economic and Social Research Institutes. And from 1998 to 1999, Chung was President of the Korean Money and Finance Association. In addition, Chung was a senior advisor for the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Policy Advisory Committee from 1995 to 1997.[citation needed]
Chung began his academic career as a business associate and assistant professor atColumbia University from 1976 to 1978. After three years of teaching Money and Financial Markets at the university, Chung returned to Seoul National University in late 1978, where he has taught for 27 years on the faculty of economics.[citation needed]
Chung had topped the list of potential candidates the rulingUri Party (nowDemocratic Party) camp would like to recruit at the2007 presidential election,[4] but he didn't enter the party.[citation needed]
On September 3, 2009, Chung was nominated asPrime Minister of South Korea by presidentLee Myung-bak. At the parliamentary confirmation hearing, he said that a government plan to relocate nine ministries and four major administration bodies to the newly created Sejong City in central South Korea would lead to nationwide inefficiency.[5] Opposition parties includingDemocratic Party threatened to vote against him,[5] but he was approved in theNational Assembly of South Korea and assumed office as the 40th prime minister on September 30, 2009.[citation needed]
After assuming office, Sejong city plan had faced uphill political battle and opposition parties vowed Saturday to their struggle against him. Afterlocal elections in June 2010, he expressed willingness to resign.[6] He offered his resignation on July 29[7][8] and stepped down on August 10 after 10 months of bitter political experience.[9]
Chung is a fan ofbaseball. He is a fan of theDoosan Bears, theKorean baseball team, and theNew York Yankees.[10]
| Academic offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | President of Seoul National University 2002–2006 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Prime Minister of South Korea 2009–2010 | Succeeded by Yoon Jeung-hyun Acting |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
