Chung Mong-hun (; September 14, 1948 – August 4, 2003) was the 5th son of

Chung Ju-yung Chung Ju-yung or Jung Joo-young (; 25 November 1915 – 21 March 2001) was a South Korean entrepreneur and the founder of Hyundai Group, Hyundai Group, one of the largest chaebols in South Korea. Raised as the eldest son of a poor Korean farme ...

, the founder of the South Korean

Hyundai Hyundai is a former South Korean industrial conglomerate ("''chaebol''"), which was restructured into the following groups: * Hyundai Group, parts of the former conglomerate which have not been divested ** Hyundai Asan, a real estate construction ...

conglomerate. After the death of his father, he took over part of his father's role and became the chairman of

Hyundai Asan Hyundai Asan () is an arm of the South Korean conglomerate Hyundai Group and a major investor in North Korea. The company manages a number of projects, including the resort at the Mount Kumgang Tourist Region and road/rail building operations. I ...

, the company in charge of various business ventures between North and South Korea. He committed

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

in 2003.

Professional career

Chung Mong-hun joined

Hyundai Heavy Industries HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. (HHI; ) is the world's largest shipbuilding company and a major heavy equipment manufacturer. Its headquarters are in Ulsan, South Korea. History HHI was founded in 1972 by Chung Ju-yung as a division ...

in 1975, becoming president of the company's shipping interests by 1981. His father,

Hyundai Group Hyundai Group (; ) is a South Korean conglomerate founded by Chung Ju-yung. The group was founded in 1947 Hyundai Engineering & Construction, as a construction company. With government assistance, Chung and his family members rapidly expanded ...

founder

, was impressed by his management style and put him in charge of the company's electronics division in 1982. In 1997, Chung Ju-yung appointed Mong-hun as the group's co-chairman. In 2000, after Ju-yung's eldest son, Mong-koo, attempted to oust Mong-hun, Ju-yung made Mong-hun the group's sole chairman. Later that year, Ju-yung announced that he and his sons would resign from all management positions at Hyundai companies, except Mong-hun would remain the chair of Hyundai Asan. However, Mong-koo remained the chairman of

Hyundai Motors Hyundai Motor Company, often referred to as Hyundai Motors, ( ) and commonly known as Hyundai (), is a South Korean multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Seoul, South Korea, which was founded in 1967. Currently, the company ow ...

and

Kia Motors Kia Corporation (, formerly known as Kyungsung Precision Industry (京城精密工業) and Kia Motors Corporation) is a South Korean multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer headquartered in Seoul, ...

. Chung Mong-hun was appointed by his father, who was born in Japan-controlled North Korea, to handle Hyundai business with the government of North Korea. He took pride in this position, and reportedly decorated his office with photographs of Hyundai officials meeting with

Kim Jong Il Kim Jong Il (born Yuri Kim; 16 February 1941 or 1942 – 17 December 2011) was a North Korean politician who was the second Supreme Leader (North Korean title), supreme leader of North Korea from Death and state funeral of Kim Il Sung, the de ...

Pyongyang Pyongyang () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is sometimes labeled as the "Capital of the Revolution" (). Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. Accordi ...

, as well as photos of himself showing Kim around a North Korean resort that Hyundai operated.

Scandal and suicide

In June 2003, Chung was indicted for his role in the "

cash-for-summit scandal Cash-for-summit () is the name of a political scandal that broke in South Korea in February 2003 and revolved around the secret payment by the Kim Dae-jung administration to North Korea of 500,000,000 dollars to secure the landmark June 2000 No ...

" on charges of doctoring company books to hide the secret money transfers of millions of dollars by the

Kim Dae-jung Kim Dae-jung (, ; 6 January 192418 August 2009) was a South Korean politician, activist and statesman who served as the eighth president of South Korea from 1998 to 2003. Kim entered politics as a member of the new wing of the Democratic Pa ...

administration to North Korea to set up the 2000 inter-Korean summit. Facing up to three years in prison after he was forced to testify in court about the money transfer days earlier, he committed suicide on August 4, 2003, by leaping from his 12th floor office.

Family

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chung, Mong-hun 1948 births 2003 deaths South Korean Buddhists 20th-century South Korean businesspeople Suicides by jumping in South Korea Yonsei University alumni Hyundai people Chung family