Chun Doo Hwan on Gwangju Uprising

Chun Doo Hwan, who took power via a coup in 1979 and seized full military control in May 1980, ordered the violent suppression of the Gwangju Democratization Movement. His core position during and immediately after the events was that the uprising was a communist-instigated riot that required a firm military response to maintain national stability. Following the crackdown, the government under his control labeled the event a "riot" and falsely claimed it was incited by North Korean sympathizers. This position was legally cemented when he was convicted in 1996 for leading an insurrection relating to the unlawful declaration of martial law to subdue the uprising, although he was later pardoned.

After stepping down, the former dictator continued to deny responsibility for indiscriminate killing, including alleged helicopter attacks on civilians, most notably in his published memoirs. Although he apologized for his brutal rule generally in a 1988 address and his family later offered apologies after his death, he never offered a sincere, specific apology for the massacre itself, and his memoir writings led to posthumous court rulings confirming his liability for distorting the facts of the uprising.