Moon administration vows fact-finding of Gwangju incident

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

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Sat, December 9, 2023 | 00:48

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Moon administration vows fact-finding of Gwangju incident

Posted : 2018-05-18 17:01

Updated : 2018-05-18 18:20

Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon speaks during the memorial event to commemorate the 38th anniversary of the May 18 Gwangju Uprising at the May 18th National Cemetery, Friday. / Yonhap

By Park Ji-won

GWANGJU _ Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon pledged Friday to continue efforts to find the truth behind massacres in Gwangju in 1980, in a speech at a memorial ceremony to mark the 38th anniversary of the May 18 Democratic Uprising, Friday.

"There are things to be done even though it has been 38 years since the Gwangju Uprising. The first thing we should do is find the truth," Lee said at the May 18th National Cemetery.

"Recently, we have discovered new evidence and testimonies of the May 18 incident. The fact-finding committee that has been launched according to a special law for the May 18 uprising in the Moon Jae-in administration will officially operate from this September and find full truth without any hindrance."

The event, under the theme "May's Gwangju, rebuild the justice," attracted up to 5,000 people, including families of victims and survivors, as well as party leaders, lawmakers and governors.

Lee also pledged that the government will restore the historical site of the former South Jeolla provincial building that has been a symbolic place where the citizen-based army fought against the government army.

During a blockade of the city by the government from May 18 to 27, 1980, about 200 people were known to be killed and over 1,800 wounded by the government army.

Former President Chun Doo-hwan's military dictatorship has been criticized for being in charge of the massacre, including firing at citizens, but Chun has denied the fact, saying "I have nothing to do with it."

Participants sing the memorial song "Imeul Wihan Haengjingok" (March for the Beloved) during the May 18 ceremony in Gwangju, Friday. / Yonhap

Last year, President Moon Jae-in attended the ceremony and sung the song "Imeul Wihan Haengjingok" (March for the Beloved), which had been allegedly prohibited by the previous Park Geun-hye and Lee Myung-bak administrations.

At the venue Friday, people sang the song together, while some families of missing or dead people and survivors spoke about their families and memories of Gwangju.

Martha Huntley, a witness and the widow of pastor Charles Betts Huntley who took photos of the Gwangju Uprising and spread them to the world, speaks during the memorial event to commemorate the 38th anniversary of the May 18 Gwangju Uprising at the May 18th National Cemetery, Friday. / Yonhap

Martha Huntley, the widow of pastor Charles Betts Huntley, who witnessed and spread documents regarding the Gwangju incident outside the country, made a speech.

"The cruelty I witnessed in Gwangju could not be expressed in any words," she said. "But the love the citizens of Gwangju showed us was greater than anything anyone can imagine."

Charles Huntley took photographs of the abuses of army soldiers in the uprising and spread them to the world. He was buried in the missionary cemetery in Yangnim-dong in Gwangju Thursday according to his will. Martha Huntley played a big role helping reporters and citizens during the uprising.

"We never lost our love for Korea, nor for the Koreans, either," she said. "Our beloved Gwangju is now forever associated with justice. You were right, dear Betts, love never ends."

Edeltraut Brahmstaedt, the widow of German journalist Jurgen Hinzpeter, also participated in the ceremony Friday.

Hinzpeter went to Gwangju as a correspondent in the midst of the democratization movement in the city with taxi driver Kim Sa-bok, risking their lives as entrance to the city had been forbidden.

Hinzpeter's story was made into a movie _ "A Taxi Driver" _ that became a mega-hit last year.

"It's an honor to be here, thanks to my dad," Kim Seung-pil, a son of the taxi driver Kim Sa-bok, told The Korea Times. Kim died of illness in 1984.

"My heart goes out to the May mothers," Gretchen Marie Mario, a daughter of Charles Betts Huntley told The Korea Times. "I weep for the May mothers in their grief and loss. But I want to reassure them their sacrifices are lighting the world. And justice, truth and freedom have been kindled in Gwangju and spreading through the world." She also was in Gwangju during the period.

"This is my childhood home," she said.

Meanwhile, President Moon released a statement to commemorate the Gwangju Uprising Movement, saying the government will do its best to find truth, especially focusing on rape.

"We will carry out a thorough investigation to find the truth of rape during the May 18 Uprising by forming a joint investigation team with the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family and the National Human Rights Commission of Korea," Moon said.

"We will do our best for every victim to restore their human dignity."

jwpark@ktimes.com