"It's fate." With this simple statement, Moon Jae-in, the presidential candidate of the Democratic United Party, stated his reason for entering politics last year. He said, "I think something like fate led me to where I am now."

When he announced that he was entering politics last year, many people were concerned about how far he could change. He claimed, "The dark times under the Lee Myung-bak government called me."

He is now spearheading demands for a change of government determined to learn what to avoid from the Lee Myung-bak government and overcome the mistakes of the Participatory Government.

■ College Years Spent with Blood Boiling with Resistance

Moon Jae-in was born in Geoje, South Gyeongsang Province in 1952. His parents were refugees from Hamheung, South Hamgyong Province, and raised him in poverty, but he did not despair. He went to school in Busan and did quite well, but he preferred to read. The dream of a young boy with literary interests changed completely after he entered university.

In 1972, when he entered the College of Law at Kyunghee University, Park Chung-hee declared the October Yushin. In 1974 when he was a junior, he plunged into the student movements. In 1975 when anti-Yushin demonstrations reached the climax, Moon led the demonstrations. Eventually he was imprisoned in Seodaemun Detention Center. He was also expelled from his school.

After his release, he was drafted and deployed to the special forces. Wearing a beret, he served as a member of the airborne troops. When he was discharged from his service, the world was still grim. After the assassination of President Park Chung-hee, a new army group led the Coup d'etat of December Twelfth, and the desire for democracy intensified with the Seoul Spring the following year.

In May that year, 200,000 university students in the Seoul area took part in pro-democracy movements against dictatorship. Moon ceased preparations for the bar exam as a ninth year university student and joined his younger colleagues in street protests at Seoul Station. Again he was fingered as the leader, and was charged with violating the decree imposing martial law.

■ Encounter with Destined Friend, Roh Moo-hyun

Moon graduated second from the Judicial Research and Training Institute after he passed the bar, but was denied his application to become a judge. His past experience in student movements placed the obstacle. Moon didn't look back as he chose the path of a lawyer, and returned to Busan in 1982 refusing offers from major law firms.

There by fate, he met the lawyer, Roh Moo-hyun. Moon reminisced, "I never imagined that that encounter would lead the rest of my destiny." The two opened a joint law firm as partners, and did not refuse cases that didn't bring in the money. Since there were many industrial complexes in the Changwon and South Gyeongsang region, they mostly handled labor-related cases. As resistance to the Chun Doo-hwan government became more violent, the defense of political cases also came their way.

Later, they resolved to join the pro-democracy movement. The two volunteered as "field commanders" during the resistance movements in June 1987, when the demonstrations blazed more intensely in Busan than in Seoul.

They organized the Busan Headquarters of the National Movement for Achieving a Democratic Constitution and took to the streets in protest every day. The two became the perfect partners in their protest against injustice.

However, when Roh entered politics, the two parted briefly. Roh was elected in the 13th parliamentary elections in 1988, and Moon remained a lawyer specializing in the region's labor and human rights disputes.

The two reunited during the presidential election in 2002. Moon joined the presidential candidate Roh Moo-hyun as his director in the Busan election polling committee. There he played the role of Roh's advisor. Whenever Roh had an important decision to make, he asked for Moon's final opinion.

■ In the Center of Power

The first year that the former president Roh Moo-hyun took office, Moon also entered Cheongwadae. He was the Senior Secretary to the President for Civil Affairs. The person who had criticized power as a human rights lawyer, now stood at the peak of power.

He accepted the position on two conditions, which he told Roh: "The senior secretary to the president for civil affairs is as far as I go," and "Don't tell me to enter politics." In the end, he was not able to keep either of his wishes.

Although he was able to reform the office of the president for civil affairs, which was once a symbol of domination and authoritarianism, he still faced many challenges ahead. The special investigation into the transfer of funds to North Korea by former president Kim Dae-jung was a difficult case for the Roh Moo-hyun government at the time, putting them in an uncomfortable position, in which they could not refuse nor welcome the investigation.

Eventually, he followed Roh's opinion to not veto the special investigation, which would take a knife to the previous government. Moon recently revealed his regret on this issue. Roh Moo-hyun and Moon Jae-in fell out with Kim Dae-jung over this issue, and later they could not easily narrow the distance. The special investigation into the transfer of funds to the North was a heavy burden on Moon in the recent primaries as well.

Moon's first year as senior secretary was a constant struggle with the heavy workload. He left Cheongwadae briefly, but when he heard of the attempt to impeach President Roh while traveling in the Himalayas, he hurried back home. As Roh's representative, Moon was once again busy working for Roh going in and out of the Constitutional Court.

He returned as the Senior Secretary to the President for Civil Society in May 2004. In March 2007, he became the Cheongwadae Chief of Staff and stayed with Roh until the end of his term.

Moon gave up his private life when he was in Cheongwadae. He was famous for not meeting people outside work extremely fearful of personal complaints, requests, and rumors. At the time, he only drank soju with his beer at evening gatherings, and even that he only drank a few glasses. When his acquaintances asked him why he didn't drink whiskey, he answered, "How could I drink whiskey? Soju is enough for me."

Moon was Roh Moo-hyun's best friend and political partner. Moon still mentions that his deepest resentment is that he wasn't with Roh at his last moment. Not once did Moon show signs of tears to outsiders during the funeral proceedings.

Although many were surprised at his self-control and bravery, there were also many who blamed it on guilt. Although Moon followed Roh and cultivated the land in Bongha village in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang after Roh's term, there was nothing he could do about the scandals of Roh's close associates and family once they started popping up.

Although Moon was called the "king of secretaries" to the president, when we retrace his experiences in state affairs during the five years, Moon has acquired as many wounds as his moments of glory.

■ In the Name of Moon Jae-in, the Politician

Moon declared that he would not enter politics. In 2008, he refused when a political party suggested that he run in the 18th parliamentary elections in Busan. This Moon handed out a new name card of the politician Moon Jae-in last year in June.

At the time, he had published an autobiography and was on a nationwide tour giving book concerts. Day in and day out, he criticized the Lee Myung-bak government. Afterwards, he joined Innovation and Integration and became their representative, and started to work towards unifying the opposition.

Last December, shortly after he succeeded in consolidating with the Democratic Party, he announced he would run in the 19th parliamentary elections in the Busan Sasang district. Everything happened fast. He commanded the parliamentary elections in the Busan and South Gyeongsang region.

On June 17 in front of Dongnimmun, Seoul, he declared his candidacy for president. On this day, he advocated for a shift in politics, a shift in generations going beyond a change of government.

Moon confessed, "I am not a person who long dreamed of becoming president." His close associates claimed that Moon was running for president not out of a simple "desire" for power, but because of a "will" for power born from the callings of history―a will that is willing to sacrifice the individual if that is what is required for a change of government.

Moon also has a duty to take care of the work left behind by his friend, Roh Moo-hyun. He mentions it in the end of his autobiography saying, "You (former president Roh Moo-hyun) are free from fate, but I am helpless at the hands of the work you have left behind." So far, the Democratic Party and supporters have sided with Moon instead of the other candidates. Moon has now passed the semi-finals.