AnarWiki/markdown/June_Democratic_Uprising.md

The **June Democratic Uprising** or **June Democracy Movement** or
**June Struggle** was a massive series of protests and strikes in South
Korea that aimed to overthrow the military dictatorship that had ran the
country since 1979 (South Korea had been under some kind of military
dictatorship since 1948, with a small window of democracy in 1960). It
occured in 1987 and

The **June Struggle** (Korean: 6월 민주항쟁; Hanja: 六月民主抗爭), also known as
the **June Democracy Movement**<sup>\[1\]</sup> and **June Democratic
Uprising** was a nationwide democracy movement in South Korea that
generated mass protests from June 10 to June 29, 1987. The
demonstrations forced the ruling government to hold elections and
institute other democratic reforms which led to the establishment of the
Sixth Republic, the present day government of South Korea.

On June 10th, the military regime of President Chun Doo-hwan announced
its choice of Roh Tae-woo as the next president. The public designation
of Chun's successor was seen as a final affront to a delayed and
deferred process to revise the South Korean constitution to permit
direct election of the President. Although pressure on the regime, in
the form of demonstrations by students and other groups, had been
building for some time, the announcement finally triggered massive and
effective protests.<sup>\[2\]</sup>

Unwilling to resort to violence before the 1988 Olympic Games, and
(correctly) believing that Roh could win competitive elections anyway
given divisions within the opposition,<sup>\[2\]</sup> Chun and Roh
acceded to the key demands of direct presidential elections and
restoration of civil liberties. Although Roh was duly elected as
president that December with a bare plurality, the democratic
consolidation of South Korea was fully underway.

Seeking to enhance his domestic and international standing by providing
a veneer of democratic representation, Chun held elections in 1985. The
result was a major moral victory for the opposition, led by Kim Dae-jung
and Kim Young-sam. The opposition's key demand was direct presidential
elections, and Chun sought to foil this by initiating a campaign of
delay, deliberation, and deferment. A parliamentary committee debated
various proposals for months; on April 13, 1987, Chun suspended even
this committee until after the Olympics.<sup>\[2\]</sup> This action
intensified unrest, but resulting demonstrations did not impress the
regime and Chun decided to continue his program to install Roh as his
successor.

Throughout this period, the labor movement, university students, and
churches in particular joined in a mutually supporting alliance to put
increasing pressure on the regime.<sup>\[2\]</sup> This mobilized
portion of civil society, in addition to the political opposition,
formed the core of the resistance that would become generalized during
the decisive events of June.

### Torture and death of Park Jong-chol

Lee Han-yeol Memorial

In the 1980s, many student activists in universities struggled against
Chun Doo-hwan's dictatorship and the aftermath of the 1980 Gwangju
Massacre. Park Jong-chol, the president of the student council in the
linguistics department of Seoul National University, was one of those
students. Detained during an investigation into such activities, Park
refused to confess the whereabouts of one of his fellow activists.
During the interrogation, authorities used waterboarding techniques to
torture him,<sup>\[3\]</sup> eventually leading to his death on 14
January 1987.

Information surrounding the events of Park Jong-chol's death was
initially suppressed. However, the Catholic Priests Association for
Justice (CPAJ), revealed the truth to the public on May 18, further
inflaming public sentiment. CPAJ planned a June 10th demonstration in
his honor.

### Death of Lee Han-yeol

As demonstrations intensified, students in Yonsei University swore to
take the field and demonstrated at the university on June 9. During the
protest, Yonsei student Lee Han-yeol was seriously injured when a tear
gas grenade penetrated his skull. In critical condition, he quickly
became a symbol of the subsequent protests over the weeks that followed.
He finally died of his wounds on July 5, after the regime had agreed to
the people's demands. Over 1.6 million citizens participated in his
national funeral, held on July 9.<sup>\[*citation needed*\]</sup> He was
buried at May 18th National Cemetery.

## Main demonstrations

The 1980 constitution limited the president to a single seven-year term.
Unlike his predecessors, Chun made no effort to amend the document in
order to allow him to run again in 1987. However, while his rule was
somewhat milder than that of Park, he resisted calls to further open up
the regime.

On June 10, Roh Tae-woo was nominated as a candidate for the presidency
at a Democratic Justice Party convention at Jamsil Arena. Major
demonstrations occurred throughout the country, with an estimated
240,000 people participating in 22 cities including
Seoul.<sup>\[*citation needed*\]</sup> Many people of all social
standings joined and supported participants.

On June 18, the *National rally for banishment of tear gas grenades*
(최루탄추방국민대회/催淚彈追放國民大會) brought 1.5 million people into the streets
across at least 16 cities.<sup>\[*citation needed*\]</sup> Finally, the
white collar workers who had before remained on the sidelines joined
protests, throwing rolls of toilet paper, applauding and otherwise
voicing their support. On June 19th, Chun issued orders to mobilize the
army, but fearing a reprise of the violent Gwangju Massacre, he
rescinded them within hours.<sup>\[2\]</sup> On June 26, the *Great
National March of Peace* (국민평화대행진/國民平和大行進) was held by Guk-bon (National
Movement Headquarters for the Gain of Democratic Constitution -
민주헌법쟁취국민운동본부/民主憲法爭取國民運動本部); over 1 million
people<sup>\[2\]</sup> in 34 cities participated and 3,467 people were
detained.<sup>\[*citation needed*\]</sup>

Eventually, Roh Tae-woo issued the June 29 Declaration, capitulating to
the demands of the protesters by promising to amend the Constitution and
to release Kim Dae-jung.

## Aftermath

### 1987 Great Labor Action

After the June Democratic Uprising, Hyundai Engine Trade Union was
established in Ulsan on July 3. Many workers started to unify labor
unions and strike. Between July and September, 1,060 new labor unions
were organized and walkouts occurred 3,458 times.<sup>\[*citation
needed*\]</sup>

### The 9th amendment of Constitution

See also: Constitution of the Republic of Korea

After the 6.29 Declaration, amendment of the Constitution finally began
in earnest. On October 12 the constitutional bill was passed, and on
October 28 it was approved. It officially took effect on February 25,
1988, when Roh Tae-woo was inaugurated as president.

The 10th Constitution strengthened civil rights. Natural and legal
rights were explicitly specified, direct presidential elections were
implemented, and the power of the president was reduced in favor of the
power of National Assembly of Korea.

### The first democratic election in South Korea

See also: 1987 South Korean presidential election

Roh retained his June 10 nomination as a candidate for the presidency of
Democratic Justice Party, and he remained Chun's chosen successor. Roh
had enough legitimate support within the Korean electorate to compete in
the elections in December 1987. His position was greatly improved by the
divisions within the opposition, as Kim Dae-jung and Kim Young-sam were
unable to unite, or even back a two-tier voting system that would create
a runoff.<sup>\[2\]</sup>

Two weeks before the presidential election, Korean Air Flight 858
exploded when it was flying to Bangkok. The revelation of the North
Korean conspiracy against the plane, and the arrival in Seoul of Kim
Hyon Hui, one of the agents responsible for the attack, the day before
the election created a profitable environment for Roh Tae-woo.

The election finally took place on December 16. In the end Roh Tae-woo
was the winner, receiving 36.6% of the vote on turnout of 89.2%. The
opposition vote was split in two, with Kim Young-sam receiving 28% and
Kim Dae-jung 27% of the vote. This election marked the beginning of the
Sixth Republic.

## In popular culture

The 2017 film *1987: When the Day Comes*, directed by Jang Joon-hwan,
depicts how the death of student activist Park Jong-chol sparked
nationwide pro-democracy protests that changed the course of Korean
history in June 1987.