Led the Founding of the Korean Association of Southeast Asian Studies, Researched Nonviolent Protest
"A Political Scientist Who Taught Without Discrimination"... Remembered by His Students
Ahn Cheongsi, an emeritus professor of the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Seoul National University, who was the first in the country to establish the graduate course "Local Autonomy Theory" and led the founding of the Korean Association of Southeast Asian Studies, passed away on the 28th. He was 81 years old.
He was born in Nagoya, Japan, and grew up in Gimcheon, North Gyeongsang Province. He graduated from the Department of International Relations and the graduate school at Seoul National University, and in 1977 received his doctorate from the University of Hawaii with a dissertation on "Development, Equality, and Political Violence." In a 2009 interview with Kyunghyang Shinmun, he said that his motivation for entering the Department of International Relations at Seoul National University was his dream of becoming Secretary-General of the United Nations. Ban Ki-moon, former UN Secretary-General, is known to have been his classmate from the class of 1963.
Professor Ahn Cheongsi, an emeritus professor of the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Seoul National University, who was the first in the country to establish the graduate course "Local Autonomy Theory" and led the founding of the Korean Association of Southeast Asian Studies, passed away on the 28th. Seoul National University Department of Political Science and International Relations website
After serving as an assistant professor at the Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security, he taught at the Department of Political Science and the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Seoul National University from 1979 to 2010. In the early 1990s, he established the country's first graduate-level course on "Local Autonomy Theory," laying the academic foundation for this field. In 1991, he played a leading role in founding the Korean Association of Southeast Asian Studies, demonstrating early interest in cooperation with ASEAN and research on Asia.
He contributed to the development of political science in Korea by serving as Director of the Seoul National University Social Science Research Institute in 1994, Director of the Korean Political Science Research Institute from 2000 to 2002, and President of the Korean Association of International Studies in 2004. Jeon Jaesung, professor of Political Science and International Relations at Chonbuk National University and one of his former students, recalled, "At that time, political protests were generally regarded as a social pathology, but he had a forward-thinking perspective, viewing nonviolent protest as a form of political participation."
He was remembered not only for his academic authority but also for his warm character. Professor Jeon said, "He never discriminated based on gender or academic background, and embraced and nurtured all his students."
He is survived by his wife, Sohn Bongsook, Chair of the Korean Institute for Women and Politics (and a member of the 17th National Assembly), and two daughters: Ahn Junghyun, Director of External Relations at Hallym University, and Ahn Jungmin, Professor in the Department of Forensic Science at Hallym University. His sons-in-law are Kim Dongwook, who works at Daewon Steel, and Lim Seunghwi, Professor in the Department of History at Sun Moon University. The funeral is being held in Room 2 of the Seoul National University Hospital funeral hall. The burial will take place at the family cemetery in Nam-myeon, Chuncheon, at 5 a.m. on July 1.
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