dent, Roh Tae Woo, would make the 29 June Declaration explicitly calling for "freedom of the press" (Won 215). With the abolition of regulations that previously limited the number of regional newspapers to one to a province, a large number of newspapers were reopened or newly founded. Religious bodies and other corporations began broadcasting on new radio channels. Now people could express their opinions and publicize topics which were once prohibited by the government. There was also a dramatic increase in the number of periodicals on the market. In addition, with the lifting of the de facto prohibition against the establishment of new newspaper, three general-interest daily newspapers, Hankyoreh Shinmun, Segue Ilbo, and Kookmin Ilbo, began publication in Seoul with nationwide distribution. The effect of the June 29, 1987 Declaration can be seen by the skyrocketing of media sources. Whereas Korea had only 30 national and regional newspapers being published at the time Roe Tae Woo made his famous 1987 liberalization declaration, by the end of 1989, this number had more than doubled to 68. The number of periodicals published daily, weekly, monthly, bimonthly or quarterly increased from 2,241 prior liberalization to 3,441 in December 1988. Another 109 periodicals were registered with the government in January 1989 (Won 217). Furthermore, information Ministry figures for December 1989 show that Korea had 4,400 periodicals, including 68 dailies, two news services and 819 weeklies (Won 217). Another important result of this 1987 Declaration was its repeal of the Basic Press Law, the government policy which created hierarchy and multiple regulations for the press. The Basic Press Law, effective in January 1981, contained a number of measures that facilitated the government's control of media. This law contained a number of harmful provisions allowing the government to confiscate media material, such as newspapers and magazines, a...
