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Top court rules that ex-dictator's memoir distorted 1980 pro-democracy uprising, defamed participants

Published: 12 Feb. 2026, 14:56 Updated: 12 Feb. 2026, 19:41

Late former President Chun Doo Hwan is seen at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital's funeral hall in Seongnam, Gyeonggi on July 3, 2019. [NEWS1]

The Supreme Court finalized a lower court’s ruling on Thursday that the memoir of former President Chun Doo Hwan distorted the 1980 Gwangju pro-democracy uprising and defamed those involved, ordering damages and restricting publication of the book.

The court dismissed the appeals and upheld a lower court decision that partially ruled in favor of the plaintiffs on Thursday. The lawsuit was filed by four groups, including the May 18 Foundation and Catholic priest Cho Young-dae, a nephew of the late priest Cho Pius, against Chun Doo Hwan and his son Chun Jae-guk.

Under the finalized ruling, Chun Doo Hwan’s widow Lee Soon-ja and his son must pay damages totaling 70 million won ($48,600) to the groups who filed the suit. They must pay 15 million won to each of the May 18-related groups and 10 million won to Cho Young-dae. Publication and distribution of the memoir are also prohibited unless certain distorted expressions are deleted.

“Some expressions in the memoir state false facts by Chun Doo Hwan and others, and these statements harmed the social reputation of the May 18 groups,” the court said. “The statements denying that there was helicopter gunfire by martial law forces and the contemptuous expressions toward Cho Pius infringed on the nephew Cho Young-dae’s feelings of remembrance.”

In the memoir published in April 2017, Chun Doo Hwan described the May 18 movement as a “riot.” He also denied helicopter gunfire by martial law forces.

He further claimed that he was “a sacrificial offering for a cleansing ritual to heal the Gwangju incident.” He also asserted claims of North Korean military involvement and that gunfire was used as an act of self-defense.

Late Presidents Roh Tae-woo, left, and Chun Doo Hwan stand in a courtroom in Seoul in 1996 to receive their first ruling on a military coup that helped them seize state power in 1979 [JOONGANG ILBO]

In response, May 18 groups and the bereaved family of Cho Pius, a key witness of the event, filed for an injunction to ban publication and distribution of the memoir. They also filed a lawsuit seeking damages against Chun, who wrote the book, and his son, Chun Jae-guk, who published and sold it.

In September 2018, the first trial court ordered Chun and his son to pay 15 million won each to four May 18 groups and 10 million won to Cho Young-dae. The court also prohibited publication and distribution unless 69 of 70 disputed expressions in the memoir were deleted.

Chun Doo Hwan appealed the ruling. The appellate court in September 2022 upheld the same amount of damages.

Lawyers Park Kang-bae, left, and Kim Jeong-ho, representing the May 18 Foundation, speak to reporters in front of the Supreme Court in Seocho District, southern Seoul on Feb. 12. [YONHAP]

Chun Doo Hwan died in November 2021 during the appellate proceedings. His widow, Lee Soon-ja, took over the lawsuit. The appellate court reviewed 63 expressions and ordered that 51 be deleted in whole or in part.

Both the first and second trial courts found that claims of North Korean military involvement, denial of helicopter gunfire by martial law forces and statements that gunfire was used in self-defense were false and lacked objective evidence.

The appellate court also ruled that claims regarding a death caused by a protester-operated armored vehicle were false.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY CHO MUN-GYU [[email protected]]