ABSTRACT
After Park’s assassination on October 26, 1979, Chung remained aloof from the struggle as Major General Chun Doo Hwan, in charge of the investigation, maneuvered for power. Chun opened his bid on December 12 with a wild shootout at his superior’s house, arresting the army chief of staff and 30 others on trumped-up charges of complicity in Park’s killing. Chun, defense security commander, was backed by 9th division troops led by 1955 Korea Military Academy classmate Major General Roh Tae Woo, who obliged by pulling his men from critical positions below the Demilitarized Zone. Come May 1980, students played into Chun’s hands, first rioting in Seoul, then holding Kwangju, loyal to the Cholla region’s firebrand son, Kim Dae Jung, until soldiers prevailed on May 27 after slaughtering hundreds of young people.
