해방 후부터 1950년대까지의 여성단체의 성격과 활동내용

Character and Activities of Women s Organizations, from Liberation to 1950 s: Origin of Present Women s Organizations

This article classified the character of women s organizations that were active during the period from the liberation to the year of 1960 when the First Republic ended, and studied the historical meaning of their activities in each age of the period. We presumed that about 47 women s organizations were active in the period from the liberation to the First Republic, 7 of which were organized before the liberation and 40 were organized during the period. In the year of 1960, 17 or- ganizations disappeared, 30 were alive. The character of the organizations in this period can be classified into 4 big categories. Those were the general or- ganizations aiming at improvement of women status, vocational promotion or- ganizations for the war victims, women experts groups and the other special organizations. The contents of the organizations activities made phased development in this period. Firstly, the enlightenment movement period from 1945 to 1950, when the organizations staged against general women the enlightening campaigns for the voting right and literacy, as well as the life-improvement campaign trying to popularize the modern and reasonable food-clothing-shelter life. Secondly, the war refugees relief activities period from 1950 when the Korean War broke out till 1956. In this period, women organizations staged vigorous relief activities and consolatory activities for the widows and orphans from the Korean war, and the soldiers and police. Thirdly, the change-the-law campaign period for improvement of women sta- tus from 1956 to 1560. In this period, the women s organizations activities got on track, to legislate or revise the laws for resolution of the women problems. The historical meaning of women s organizations activities in this period is that it formed an origin for the present their activities. Many of them organized in this period are still operating to this day as major organizations, and their works in this period has become the models for the activity programs of the present women organizations. The enlightening campaign and the relief activ- ities carried out in this period are still the major activity programs being pro- moted by the present women s groups. Furthermore, the equal right legislation movement has become one of the core strategy in promotion of the women s policy driven by the women s organizations and government from 1980 s, of which lead had been provided by the women s organization s activities in the late 1950 s. Many of the data and information about the organizations and persons are still not correct, which is a practical limitation to the review of the whole as- pect of activities of the organizations in this period. Thus, this article should be an essay, and I expect more of the facts to be found out by exhumer of the historical materials about the individual women s organizations and active per- sons there, and subsequent discussions to be introduced in the future.