[Their Gwangju, Our Gwangju] English ver. [그들의 광주, 우리의 광주] 영문판

Gwangju MBC Special for the 36th Anniversary of May 18 [Their Gwangju, Our Gwangju] This documentary won the special jury award at the 2017 Houston international independent film festival (Political / International Issues) and the 2016 5.18 press prize jointly awarded by the 5.18 Memorial Foundation and the Gwangju Jeonnam Press Association. ■■Program Objective The phrase “Gwangju Spirit” describes the spirit of the May 18th democratic uprising. Gwangju is the only Korean city which has a name that stands for a common value shared by the entire nation. There is no other city in which the citizens gave up their lives for the common good of the entire nation. This isthe Gwangju of the May 18th democratic uprising. The late JurgenHinzpeter who passed away early this year was the German reporter who risked his life to make sure that the videos he took on May 18th were seen by the world. He was there with many people who gave up their lives to tell the truth of Gwangju under the military regime that brutally crushed the May 18th democratic uprising.These include Sogang University student Kim Ui-gi, Soongshil University student Park Rae-jeon, Gyeongwon University student Song Gwang-yeong, Lee O-soon who joined the protestors after witnessing her youngest son’s death, Busan laborer Hwangbo Young-guk, and Jang I-ji, who committed suicide after being tortured for trampling on a portrait of then President Chun Doo-hwan during reservist training. They came from all over the country, from Busan, Gyeongsangbuk-do Province, Chungcheong-do Province andGangwon-do Province to Seoul. Although the Chun Doo-hwan regime tried to isolate the citizen of Gwangju, they were not alone in the fight thanks to the people who risked their lives to tell the truth of Gwangju. We take a look at their lives and remember their sacrifice in the present to once again reflect on the meaning of the May 18thdemocratic uprising. ■■Broadcast Content Kim Ui-gi, Park Rae-jeon, Kim Tae-hun, Kim Jong-tae, Pyo Jung-du, Hwangbo Young-guk, Jo Seong-man, Choi Deok-su, Kim Byeong-gu, Lee Dong-su, KoJeong-hui, Ahn Chi-ung, Choi Dong, Yang Young-jin, Hong Gi-il, Jang Yi-gi. These are only some of the people who gave their lives to tell the truth about Gwangju and the May 18th democratic uprising, by self-immolation and other ways of suicide. The stories of the dozens who perished have not been told properly until now. Their deaths are now remembered only by their family and peers. Their names couldn’t even be found in the various May 18th commemoration projects and events held recently. Until now, we only heard about the Gwangju citizens who were sacrificed in the month of May, 1980.We want to turn the spotlight to these forgotten martyrs this time. If it wasn’t for JurgenHinzpeter, the German reporter who risked his life to report the Gwangju uprising, the truth would have been forever hidden by the lies of the Chun Doo-hwan regime. If it was not for the video footage he took, we would not be able to refute the false claims made by extremist voices on the internet that the May 18th democratic uprising was incited by North Korean soldiers. As we mourn the recent loss of JurgenHinzpeter, we remember his courageous reporting, putting his life at stake for city and people that he so loved. Hinzpeter’s reports inspired students and laborers to protest and sacrifice their own lives to call for the truth to be told. What did Gwangju mean to these martyrs who gave up their lives for the people of Gwangju, upon seeing the reports by HInzpeter? Although May 18this a national memorial day and the Gwangju democratic uprising archives have been listed in the UNESCO Memory of the World Register, are their sacrifice being remembered in the present? We breathe new life into the memory of the May 18th democratic uprising by reflecting on how much the Korean people loved Gwangju and felt remorse for the sacrifice of its citizens in the 1980s. We bring their lives back into the spotlight so that they may be remembered and documented, to expand the meaning of the May 18th democratic uprising from Gwangju to the entire nation 광주MBC 5.18 36주년 특집 [그들의 광주, 우리의 광주] 영문판입니다.