Supreme Council for National Reconstruction
In May 1961, the Supreme Council for National Reconstruction overthrew the Second Republic of Korea in the May 16 coup, led by Major General Park Chung-hee, in response to its inability to prevent political instability after the overthrow of the First Republic of Korea under President Syngman Rhee in the April Revolution. The Supreme Council established a military junta headed by General Chang Do-yong and the May 16 coup's supporters in the Republic of Korea Army, hoping to kickstart South Korea's economic development that had been ignored for twelve years under the First Republic, and remove so-called "liberation aristocrats" – the ruling class of conservative politicians involved in the Korean independence movement. Power struggles within the Supreme Council allowed Park to engineer the gradual transfer of power from Chang to himself. In July, Park officially replaced Chang as Chairman, effectively becoming the "de facto" dictator of South Korea. The Supreme Council suspended the National Assembly, reinforced South Korea's anti-communist position, and undertook a number of economy-oriented reforms to help industrialize and develop the country, including the first Five-Year Plan.