Reveal truth about 1980 Gwangju Uprising
Tomorrow marks the 40th anniversary of the May 18, 1980, Gwangju Uprising. It has been referred to as the pro-democracy movement for more than 20 years. But the truth behind the uprising has yet to be fully revealed. Thus it is of urgent importance to get to the bottom of the tragic massacre of around 200 civilians by the military junta under the command of Chun Doo-hwan.
In this regard, President Moon Jae-in emphasized the need to find out the truth about the military's bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protesters. He told a regional MBC broadcasting station in an interview aired Sunday that some key issues remained unresolved after four decades amid continued attempts to conceal or distort facts.
Those issues include who ordered soldiers to open fire on the protesters, how the helicopter shooting occurred, and who was finally responsible for the incident. Past governments had tried to shed light on such issues, but to no avail. Former President Chun, who seized power through the brutal suppression of the uprising after the assassination of then President Park Chung-hee in October 1979, has repeatedly denied his involvement and responsibility. He and his cronies have systematically prevented fact-finding missions from laying the truth bare.
Now President Moon's remarks are drawing keen attention as they raise expectations that his liberal government will dig deeper into the case. He has emphasized the need for the spirit of the democratization movement to be enshrined in the preamble of the Constitution. For this, a constitutional amendment is an imperative. Only the March 1, 1919, Independence Movement and the April 19, 1960, Student Revolution are inscribed in the Constitution.
Yet, a revision to the supreme law is no easy task. In March 2018, President Moon submitted a revision bill to the National Assembly to include the May 18 movement in the Constitution. But it was scrapped due to objections from conservative lawmakers.
The Moon administration and the ruling Democratic Party of Korea should work harder to persuade opposition parties to cooperate in rewriting the Constitution to advocate for the beacon of democracy. Conservative legislators also need to shed their misconceived recognition that the uprising was staged by mobs or even North Korean commandoes.
Also drawing attention is the launch of an independent fact-finding committee last week. This panel, which will operate for three years, is required to deal with unresolved issues. It is important to reveal the truth before it is too late. The purpose of this fact-finding mission is not to punish those responsible, but to find out the truth and promote reconciliation.