Gwangju Uprising: the Rebellion for Democracy in South Korea

On May 18, 1980, student activists gathered in the South Korean city of Gwangju to protest the coup d’état and the martial law government of General Chun Doo-hwan. The security forces responded with unmitigated violence. Over the next ten days hundreds of students, activists, & citizens were arrested, tortured, & murdered. The events of the uprising shaped over a decade of resistance to the repressive South Korean regime & paved the way for the country’s democratization.

This fresh translation by Slin Jung of a text compiled from eyewitness testimonies presents a gripping and comprehensive account of both the events of the uprising & the political situation that preceded & followed the violence of that period. Included is a preface by acclaimed Korean novelist Hwang Sok-yong.

Gwangju Uprising is a vital resource for those interested in East Asian...

Hwang Sok-yong was born in 1943 & is arguably Korea’s most renowned author. In 1993, he was sentenced to 7 years in prison for an unauthorised trip to the North to promote exchange between artists in the two Koreas. Five years later, he was released on a special pardon by the new president. The recipient of Korea’s highest literary prizes, he has been shortlisted for the Prix Femina Etranger & was awarded the Emile Guimet Prize for Asian Literature for his book At Dusk.