Democratic Independent Party

Democratic Independent Party
AbbreviationDemocratic Independent Party
ChairpersonHong Myong-hui
FounderAn Jae-hong, Kim Byung-ro, Hong Myong-hui, Kim Ho, Pak Yong-hee, Yi Kuk-no, Kim Won-yong
Founded19 October 1947 (1947-10-19)
Dissolved8 October 1949 (1949-10-08)
Mid or late 1960s
IdeologyKorean nationalism
Social democracy
Progressivism
Political positionCentre
Democratic Independent Party
Hangul
민주독립당
Hanja
民主獨立黨
RRMinju dongnipdang
MRMinju tongniptang

Democratic Independent Party (DIP; Korean: 민주독립당) was a centrist political party in North and South Korea. The party was established on 19 October 1947. Its initiators were An Jae-hong, Kim Byung-ro, Hong Myong-hui, Kim Ho, Pak Yong-hee, Yi Kuk-no and Kim Won-yong. Of them, Hong became the chairman of the party.

It opposed Syngman Rhee's single-candidate government theory and supported Kim Ku and Kim Kyu-sik's North-South negotiation theory, but after the 1948 North-South Joint Conference, it split into pro-North and 'Yang Kim' factions, and after several mass defections from the party, it transformed into a pro-North minor party. It participated in elections in North Korea from 1948 until at least 1962.