Former S. Korean President Roh Tae-woo dies at 88

Former President of South Korea, Roh Tae-woo died on Tuesday at the age of 88, reported Yonhap News Agency citing Roh's aides.

According to the News Agency, the former President was recently admitted to a hospital after his health deteriorated. However, he could not recover and died on Tuesday.

Roh Tae-woo, a former General, served as the President of South Korea from 1988 to 1993.

Roh, a former general, succeeded former President Chun Doo-hwan after helping the latter seize power through a 1979 military coup in the wake of a power vacuum created by the death of former authoritarian President Park Chung-hee.

At the beginning of South Korea's democratisation, Roh accepted calls for a "direct presidential election" and sought to broaden diplomatic ties with socialist nations, according to Yonhap.

With the spread of pro-democracy rallies in the country in 1987, Roh accepted calls for a direct presidential system called as "June 29 Declaration". He was elected president later that year through a direct vote.

He started his administration under the slogan "an era of ordinary people" in an effort to shed his military image.

( With inputs from ANI )