SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – Former President Kim Young-sam, who formally ended decades of military rule in South Korea and accepted a massive international bailout during the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis, died Sunday. He was 87.
The chief of Seoul National University Hospital, Oh Byung-Hee, said Kim died there early Sunday. He said Kim is believed to have suffered from a severe blood infection and acute heart failure before he died.
Kim was taken to the hospital on Thursday due to a high fever, Oh said. In recent years, Kim had been treated at the hospital for stroke, angina and pneumonia, Oh added.
Kim was an important figure in South Korea’s pro-democracy movement and opposed the country’s military dictators for decades. As president, Kim laid the foundation for a peaceful power transfer in a country that had been marked by military coups.
During his presidency from 1993-1998, he had his two predecessors indicted on mutiny and treason charges stemming from a coup. Still, Kim pardoned the two convicted military strongmen – Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo – at the end of his term.