The May 18, 1980, Gwangju Democratization Movement is a painful chapter in Korea's modern history. At the order of military strongmen, soldiers turned their guns on the people they were supposed to protect. The brutal act was falsely justified as a legitimate act to put down a rebellion. Army generals Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo usurped power.
On the 38th anniversary, Hankook Ilbo released unpublished photos by four of its journalists ― Kim Hae-woon, Han Ryung, Park Tae-hong and Kim Yong-il ― who were on the scene during the tragic period.
"Even if I had a camera, I could not take a picture," Park Tae-hong, 75, was quoted as saying. "I was busy hiding my body from flying bullets. I was overwhelmed by the sheer size of the tragedy and couldn't lift the camera at a morgue."
They took some 2,000 pictures but only a few were published then. Here are some of those newly released.
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| A woman passes a young man who fell on Geumnam Street, Gwangju, on May 20, 1980. Two fully armed soldiers stand guard nearby. / Korea Times |
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| Citizens armed with rifles rush to ride a bus heading for Geumnam Street, in the plaza of Gwangju Songjeong Station. / Korea Times |
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| A demonstrator is taken away by a soldier at Geumnam Street on May 19, 1980. / Korea Times |
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| About 200 taxi drivers in Gwangju staged a protest rally on May 20, 1980, moving in the direction of Geumnam Street. / Korea Times |
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| Young men are tied and escorted by soldiers at the provincial office on May 27, 1980. / Korea Times |
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| A soldier looks at the body of a man in a pool of blood on May 27, 1980. / Korea Times file |
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| Members of a bereaved family cry in front of the body of their loved one on May 29, 1980, at a municipal cemetery in Mangwol-dong, Gwangju. / Korea Times |
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| People pass by the tank at Geumnam Street on May 29, 1980. / Korea Times |
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