[3][4] This generation had been veterans of student protests against authoritarian rule and advocated a conciliatory approach towards North Korea, even at the expense of good relations with the United States.

[6] Due to the strong currency, for the first time in history, South Korea became the world's 10th largest economy and exceeded the $20,000 milestone in nominal GDP per capita during his administration.

Because of his poor performance in economy and diplomacy, Roh was not a popular president, having the worst approval rating on average ever recorded in South Korean political history.

[17] Public opinion on Roh has improved considerably since his death, which has taken into account his human rights background and national economic progress during his presidency.

With fellow human rights lawyers, he pointed out that this case was forged, then claimed that the National Security Act (South Korea) itself should be judged.

[21] The same year he was jailed while investigating the cause of death of the Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering factory worker Lee Seok-Kyu, who had been killed by a stray police tear gas bullet while on strike.

[citation needed] In 2000, Roh ran for the National Assembly representing Buk-gu and Gangseo-gu in Busan as part of a campaign to overcome regionalism in Korean politics, but was defeated.

[30] In 2000, Roh was appointed Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries under Kim Dae-jung, and this position would constitute his major government experience prior to the presidency.

"[citation needed] That comment was quoted partly by conservative media, ('I cannot continue the presidency') and Roh was beset by skepticism about his ability and experience.

[43] Roh successfully pushed for free trade agreements in spite of domestic opposition from his traditional leftist constituency (who denounced it as "neoliberal")[44] and various groups (particularly farmers) opposed to market opening.

After Roh refused to apologize, led by the opposition parties holding the majority, the Assembly voted to impeach him for illegal electioneering on 12 March 2004.

[47][failed verification] Roh's executive power was suspended pending a final decision by the Constitutional Court, and Prime Minister Goh Kun ran the country as the Acting President.

[citation needed] As a part of his balanced national development campaign to reverse the concentration of wealth in Seoul, Roh also pursued a plan to relocate the capital 100 miles away to South Chungcheong Province, ostensibly to relieve congestion.

[52] At the same time regulations proliferated, investment capital exited the country,[53] unemployment (especially among the young) increased, wealthy students flocked overseas as the education system stagnated, and housing prices in Seoul soared far beyond the reach of the average citizen.

Roh responded by dismissing criticism as "shameless mudslinging",[54] and touted the achievements of his government in increasing national competitiveness, strengthening the economy.

One of the more successful campaigns (at least during his term) was Roh's pursuit of an FTA with the United States, concluded in April 2007 after many months of negotiations by Kim Hyun-jong, the deputy minister for trade.

Public antipathy to the United States was prevalent in 2002, particularly evoked by the Yangju highway incident, where two South Korean middle school girls were crushed to death by a U.S. Army armored bridge-laying vehicle.

Roh explained the deployment as only a peacekeeping mission and claimed that such commitment was required to bring favor from the United States in resolving the North Korean nuclear crisis.

[67] They were discussing comprehensive measures to cope with the unprecedented incident, including issuance of presidential messages of apology and plans to prevent possible harassment of South Koreans living in the United States.

[citation needed] During the visit, Roh proclaimed he would not seek any more apologies from Japan over its colonial occupation, in the hope of maintaining a friendly relationship between the two countries.

Although Roh's proclamation was made in good faith, some expressed concern that Japan may have interpreted this as the termination of its responsibility for the colonial past, and use it as an excuse to deny any claims for compensation that may arise in the future.

[citation needed] Despite Roh's hope, relations with Japan deteriorated henceforth, in several areas of conflict such as compensation issues for comfort women, denial of the colonial past in Japanese history textbooks, and disputes over the Liancourt Rocks.

[citation needed] According to Rep. Chung Mong-joon, former leader of the ruling Saenuri Party, "The Roh Moo-hyun administration proposed that the U.S. define Japan as a hypothetical enemy," at the Korea-U.S. Security Consultative Meeting in Seoul in October 2005.

By May 2009, prosecutors had summoned Roh's wife,[83] son,[84] and eventually the former president himself[85] on suspicion of receiving 1 million dollars in bribes from Park Yeon-Cha, a businessman close to the ex-President.

Roh himself had been sued by the widow of former Daewoo E&C head Nam Sang-Guk for allegedly making defamatory comments that drove her husband to throw himself off of a bridge.

[23] Hundreds of thousands of supporters turned out to pay their respects in memorial shrines erected around the country, as did President Lee Myung-bak and numerous other prominent politicians.

[117] The Democratic Party also decided to block the scheduled opening of the National Assembly until the Lee Myung-bak government accepted responsibility for Roh's suicide.

Former Prime Minister Han Myeong-suk and others claimed that the investigation of Roh's corruption case leading to his death was President Lee's political revenge and murder.

[134] Lee In-gyu (이인규), the former head of the SPO, released his book on the involvements of the political corruptions surrounding the investigation against Roh that led to his suicide.

[135] In his book, Lee acknowledged that the South Korean National Intelligence Service had intentionally released overly sensational stories about President Roh's bribery charges.