The Left–Right Coalition Movement () was a movement during the division of Korea led by centrists in 1946. It sought to promote cooperation between the left and right-wing of Korea in establishing a unified, peninsula-wide government after Japanese occupation. To this end, it formed a Left–Right Coalition Committee that brought together Korean politicians from across the political spectrum. It eventually failed in its goal due to increasing political polarization and the loss of the support of the United States, which adopted a firmer anti-communist stance around the beginning of the Cold War.
Background
Political factions
After the liberation of Korea, there were a number of political movements in the United States Army Military Government in Korea. National Association, led by Syngman Rhee – for the Rapid Realization of Korean Independence. Korea Democratic Party, led by Song Jin-woo and Kim Seong-su – right-wing party that opposed the trusteeship and desired the establishment of a sole government in the South. Korean Provisional Government (KPG), led by Kim Ku – right-wing party that opposed the trusteeship and desired a united government of the South and North. Communist Party of Korea, led by Pak Hon-yong – left-wing party that supported the agreement of the Moscow Conference and desired a unified government of the South and North. Moderates, such as Lyuh Woon-hyung, Kim Kyu-sik, Ahn Chai-hong – prudent regarding the issue of trusteeship and desired to establish a unified government of the South and North with the Left–Right Coalition Movement, as well as resumption of the US-Soviet Joint Commission.
1945 Moscow Conference
During the Moscow Conference of December 1945, conflict between the left and right intensified over the issue of the proposed four-power trusteeship. From the left-wing, Pak Hon-yong announced a statement in support of the trusteeship, while the right-wing censored Pak's statement and initiated an anti-trusteeship movement, which was led by Kim Ku and Syngman Rhee. On 27 December, the day after the conference ended, Kim Kyu-sik stated his disapproval of the trusteeship, but he eventually admitted the inevitability of the trusteeship. Ahn Chai-hong was also initially against the trusteeship but later acquiesced. Within the Korea Democratic Party, Song Jin-woo insisted on being prudent about the trusteeship and met with the KPG at their headquarters at 10 p.m. on 29 December. However, the following day, Song was assassinated by , a member of the right-wing terrorist organization the White Shirts Society.
On January 8, the leaders of the four Korean political parties (Korea Democratic Party, National Association, Communist Party of Korea, People's Party of Korea), with Lyuh Woon-hyung from the People's Party of Korea, as well as the provisional government, gathered and discussed the trusteeship. They recognized that the Moscow Conference had secured the independence of Korea. Thus, trusteeship should be solved by the government to be established in the future. This meeting was significant, since it not only saw agreement between the major parties of the left and right wings after independence, but also a formal agreement between the left and right regarding the decisions of the Moscow Conference. However, this agreement was revoked less than a day later, because of the opposition to it by the conservatives of the Korea Democratic Party and moderate politicians of the provisional government. It now seemed to be impossible to find a compromise between the supporters and opponents of the trusteeship,.
First US-Soviet Joint Commission and Statement in Jeongeup
In March 1946, the first US-Soviet Joint Commission was held. The Soviet Union agreed to "give the right to participate in the united provisional government to those who would support the Moscow Conference", but the United States stated that they should "give the right to participate in the united provisional government to all the political parties". When it was not possible to find a compromise, the commission was postponed indefinitely.
In June 1946, the conflict between the left and right severely intensified, due to the statement of Syngman Rhee in Jeongeup. He wanted to establish a sole government, and a rally "to establish a sole government" was held by the National Front for Democracy Commission.