After 17 years of dictatorship following the the Oct. 26, 1979, incident - when Kim Jae-kyu, director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), had then-President Park Chung-hee assassinated - the newly-inaugurated president, Choi Kyu-ha, said he would accept the people's demands for democracy.Yet on Dec. 12, 1979, Chun Doo-hwan and other members of the new military staged a coup d&'etat and took control of the military. While in charge of the military, some Gwangju citizens began a democratic protest, which grew rapidly. Chun's military reacted, forcefully suppressing Gwangju citizens, and assuring Chun's presidency.

Pro-democracy movements - including public discontent over the coercive rule of the Chun administration and a revision of the presidential election constitution - were consistently harshly cracked down on. In January 1987, Park Jong-chul, a student at Seoul National University, was taken to the anti-communist detached office, Namyeondong Daegon Bunsil and was killed during an investigation; the Chun administration announced death, saying, "I hit the desk and fell down." Following the announcement, angry citizens staged street protests demanding a constitutional revision of the direct presidential election system. Yet the Chun administration ignored the proposal, announcing instead a constitutional measure on April 13, stating it would elect the next president through indirect elections. To make matters worse, Yonsei University student Lee Han-yeol was injured on July 5 by a hand grenade thrown by police during a protest in front of the university. It was this incident that triggered the The June Struggle for Democracy.

 

1980.06.10.

On June 10, a massive demonstration organized by the "National Committee for a Democatic Constitution (NCDC)" was held at Seoul City Hall Plaza. Among them, the ally for the fabrication of Park Jong-chul&'s Torture was held at the Seoul Cathedral. As of 6 p.m., the NCDC ordered taxi drivers to stop and honk their horns or shake white handkerchiefs in protest of the Chun dictatorship. Female high school students also actively participated supporting the protests by bringing food and water to the protestors.

However, the Myeong dong Cathedral sit-down protest began when a group of protesters fled to the cathedral following police arrest. There, Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan, then the head of the Catholic Archdiocese of Seoul, used his position to stop the police from capturing the protesters. The next day, about 600 people, including college students, continued their week-long protest at Myeongdong Cathedral while sporadic demonstrations were staged aroud the city, including at Namdaemun Market. Office workers also responded to the students' protests and expressed their intention to protest the police crackdown.

 

1980.06.18.

On June 18, a manifestation protesting police use of hand grenades spread from Myeong-dong to Busan, Daegu and Gwangju. All over the country, protestors chanted: "Stop using hand grenades, release the detainee, and fight for democracy in dictatorship." In response, the Chun administration warned that it would send in troops to suppress them - but in many cities, citizens increasingly fought more against the police by burning police stations.

 

1980.06.26.

On June 26, one million people (counted by the NCDC) poured into the streets of 34 cities and four counties across the country in the "National Peace Parade," taking part in massive protests demanding the establishment of a democratic government along with a direct presidential election system; some 300,000 ordinary people also filled the streets in Gwangju. This showed the people's fervent enthusiasm for democracy and dealt a decisive blow to the Chun administration as it lifted the limits of police force. Eventually, the military forces surrendered to the people's democratic movement.

 

1980.06.29.

As a result, Noh Tae-woo, the ruling party's candidate for the next presidential election, made the June 29 pro-democracy declaration, and, finally, Chun accept a direct election system. After the June 29 Declaration, the amendment of the direct election system was carried out in earnest, and the amendment of the direct election system of the president was made in October 1987 after a referendum on the revision of the new Constitution of the Sixth Republic.

The The June Struggle for Democracy concluded the military dictatorship. It served as a decisive opportunity for the ideology and system of democracy to take root politically, socially, and culturally. In addition, democratic civic movements from all walks of life began rapidly developing. The June Struggle for Democracy was a struggle waged by workers, students, citizens, the poor and the peasants throughout the nation - and the entire uprising was an opportunity for everyone involved to awaken and exert organizational power.

 

Sae-Yoon Kim

Guset-Reporter

sayun09@naver.com

저작권자 © 국민대학교 신문방송사 무단전재 및 재배포 금지