Former South Korean dictator declared guilty of defaming a dead priest

Former South Korean dictator Chun Doo-Hwan was, on November 29, declared guilty of defaming a now-dead priest. The verdict was made in connection to the 1980 uprising, which was crushed by his troops. However, in a 2017 memoir, the former ruler had denounced a priest who repeatedly testified that helicopter gunships had opened fire on civilians, as "Satan in a mask".

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Eight-month sentence

Following the statement, the priest’s family had lodged a complaint against the Doo-Hwan, prompting prosecutors to take him to trial. On November 29, the judge in Gwangju district court declared him guilty and awarded him an eight-month jail sentence, short of 18 months custodial term which the prosecutors had sought. After the verdict was pronounced, the judge spared him to return to the prison, Yonhap news agency reported.

'Butcher of Gwangju'

Known as the 'Butcher of Gwangju', Doo-Hwan in 1980 crushed an uprising opposed the “martial law government”. While official government records claim that a total of 200 people killed, human rights activist tout that the number could have been around 2,000. In 1996, as public trials began, the dictator was given a death sentence by the Seoul District Court. However, on 22 December 1997,  was later pardoned by President Kim Young-sam, with the advice of then-President-elect Kim Dae-Jung. Despite all this, he still denies any direct involvement in the suppression of the uprising.

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While South Korea has evolved to adopt a presidential form of government, North is still under a dictatorship. Just a day ago, South Korea's spy agency revealed that North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un has issued several orders including the execution of two people, ban on fishing at sea and imposed a lockdown in the capital Pyongyang in a bid to curb the spread of COVID-19. They further stated that Kim Jong Un-led North Korea government has also directed the diplomats overseas to avoid doing anything that could provoke the US as the leader is worried about President-elect Joe Biden's approach towards North Korea. 

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Image: Yonhap