Human rights in South Korea are codified in the Constitution of the Republic of Korea, which compiles the legal rights of its citizens. These rights are protected by the Constitution and include amendments and national referendum. These rights have evolved significantly from the days of military dictatorship to the current state as a constitutional democracy with free and fair elections for the presidency and the members of the National Assembly. South Korean democracy has legally protected rights for political, civil and socio-economic individuals, although there are limitation and even discrimination against certain groups. These groups are certified as at-risk groups comprises women, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons (LGBT) and racial and ethnic minorities such as refugees and migrants. According to the Freedom in the World index, South Korea is considered to have a high human rights record in the category for human freedom in civil and political rights, with 83 points out of the 100 points. In the Constitution, the citizens are given the rights of freedom of speech, press, petition and assembly for its nationals. History The emergence of human rights can be traced back to the Choson Dynasty (1392-1910) with the enlightenment movement reformers Kim Ok-Kyun, So Chae-p'il and Pak Yong-Hyo. Before that, the traditional political ideals were based in the NeoConfuciansim that dominantly focused on the paternalistic responsibility of the government and their ruling. In the 19th century, these ideas transformed into the equality of gender and social class. These ideas spread during the Japanese colonial period (1910-1945) and solidified civil and political rights in 1919 in Shanghai by Korean refugees. Within Korea, the circulation of the ideas of rights provided experience in the organization and protest strategy. Since under the colonial rule, many Koreans experienced dual legal standards and abuse such as torture by the Japanese. Hence, the establishment of a legal system was pursued by the Korean nationalists. After the liberation from the Japanese rule in 1945, the execution of the human rights was hindered by factors as the division of the northern and southern part and their ideological conflict. Also, the practices of the Japanese colonial rule were still in place and enacted. The intervention of the United States advisors to prevent the use of force and violence in political cases were unsuccessful as well as the sponsorship for legal reforms. These conflicts continued in the presidency of Park Chung-hee. In 1967, the