Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of South Carolina, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 194-212).

Dissertation (PhD)--University of Stellenbosch, 2004. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Since the late 1940s, South Africa and South Korea were ruled by authoritarian governments, which oppressed the people’s freedom and rights. The governments created the deeply divided societies that resulted in racism in South Africa and regionalism in South Korea. These similarities may have played a major role in allowing Nelson Mandela and Kim Dae-jung to develop strong emotional bonds with their followers and to articulate their visions for the future. The two leaders, Nelson Mandela and Kim Dae-jung, fought for freedom and human rights against the apartheid government in South Africa and military dictatorial government in South Korea. During these processes of democratisation, the two leaders displayed common transformational and social learning leadership styles and presented their visions of the end of the authoritarian regimes and the establishment of democracy; shared these visions with the people and encouraged and mobilised them in struggling together against authoritarian government. Subsequently, the two leaders’ transformational and social learning leadership styles provide a successful role model to countries in which there are conflicts between the constituents of the society, as in East Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa and Middle East; a desire for transformation towards democracy by the people, and where countries are confronted with new challenges. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Beide Suid-Afrika en Suid-Korea was sedert die laat 1940’s onder die bewind van outoritêre regerings met gepaardgaande onderdrukking van die mense se vryhede en regte. Dié regerings het diep-verdeelde gemeenskappe daar gestel wat in Suid-Afrika op rassisme en in Suid-Korea op regionalisme uitgeloop het. Hierdie ooreenkomste mag grootliks daartoe bygedra het dat beide Nelosn Mandela en Kim Dae-jung sterk emosionele verbintenisse met hul volgelinge kon ontwikkel en hul toekomsvisies kon artikuleer. Die twee leiers, Nelson Mandela en Kim Dae-jung, het onderskeidelik teen die apartheidsregering in Suid-Afrika en die militêre diktatuur in Suid-Korea geveg vir vryheid en menseregte. Gedurende hierdie demokratiseringsprosesse het die twee leiers gemeenskaplike transformasie en sosiale leer leierskapstyle openbaar, hulle visies oor die beëindiging van outoritêre regimes en die vestiging van demokrasie bekend gemaak en die mense aangemoedig tot en gemobiliseer vir strydvoering teen die outoritêre regerings. Gevolglik verskaf hierdie twee leiers se transformasie en sosiale leer leierskapstyle ‘n geslaagde rolmodel vir alle lande waar daar konflik binne gemeenskappe bestaan, soos in Oos-Asië, Suid-Sahara Afrika asook die Midde-Ooste; lande waar die mense smag na transformasie tot demokrasie en lande wat hulleself met nuwe uitdagings gekonfronteer vind.

The thesis describes Korean Peninsula political development from 1998 to 2008, in the frame of historical context from 1948 when two independent states were oficially founded. Discussed decade was characterized by the policy of engagement or the sunshine policy of the Republic of Korea, respectively. This represented a concept of friendly relationship towards the DPRK, aiming at final unification. Detailed description of the political development year by year and its evaluation is the subject of this thesis.

二次世界大戰時，美國擊敗日本，使朝鮮半島脫離殖民統治，然而隨後的美蘇冷戰，使得朝鮮半島分裂成南北兩韓，而美國與南韓簽訂條約，成立美韓同盟(U.S.–South Korea Alliance)，成為繼日本之後，美國在亞洲的另一個戰略同盟。冷戰與後冷戰期間，美韓關係雖有波折，但不影響美韓同盟的強度。直到2000年美國小布希就任，其強硬的北韓政策與南韓金大中的陽光政策形成對比，成了美韓關係不協調的開端。而後連任的小布希延續其北韓政策，南韓繼任的盧武鉉將陽光政策擴大實施，推出和平繁榮政策，美韓兩國的北韓政策再度不同調，兩國關係持續跌宕起伏至2008年。本研究試圖以攻勢現實主義分析美國此時期的北韓政策；以新自由制度主義檢視南韓的交往政策，透過理論交鋒研究兩國利益的差異，並檢視外部因素如中國、日本、俄羅斯的影響，進而解釋此時期美韓關係不協調的原因。 / In 1945, the U.S. defeated Japan. The Korean peninsula was liberated from Japanese colonization at the end of World War II. However, the confrontation between the U.S. and the Soviet Union left two Koreas separated by the Demilitarized Zone from the Cold War to the present. In addition, based on the Mutual Defense Treaty Between the United States of America and the Republic of Korea, the U.S.–South Korea Alliance was established. During the Cold War and Post Cold War era, the U.S.-South Korea relations faced hard times, but the alliance remained strong. When George W. Bush became the president of the U.S. in the year 2000, his hardline policy toward North Korea collided with South Korea’s Sunshine Policy, which was made by the president Kim Dae-jung. These different policies toward the North caused tensions to the U.S.-South Korea relations. Then the re-elected Bush continued hardline policy against North Korea, but South Korea’s new president—Roh Moo-hyun—decided to inherit the sunshine policy and develop Peace and Prosperity Policy. Washington and Seoul still failed to reach a consensus on how to deal with Pyongyang. The U.S.-South Korea relations continued to fluctuate until 2008. This study tries to analyze the U.S. policy toward North Korea through offensive realism and examine South Korean engagement policy through neoliberal institutionalism from 2000 to 2008. Besides, this thesis also considers exogenous factors such as China, Japan, and Russia, trying to explain the inconstancy of the U.S.-South Korea relations.