The tragedy of ‘5·18’ reproduced in Myanmar… the decisive scenes

May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement left with black and white photos
The surprisingly similar tragedy of the Myanmar crisis

Soldiers with guns smash down citizens who have fallen on the street with clubs, and roughly drag young men who can no longer protest. The families of the victims who died in the bloody suppression of the military and police are miserable, and the angry citizens come to the streets and shout to overthrow the military dictatorship.

Historical scenes recorded in black and white photographs during the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement in 1980 are being reproduced in Myanmar now 41 years later. Citizens eager for democracy fill the streets, and the ruthless violence of the military and police is committed. Various traces of resistance, such as barricades made by protesters, are piled up throughout major cities in Myanmar, and the unfair death of the victims and the crying of the bereaved endlessly.

For the Korean people who went through the’May 18 Gwangju’, the appearance of the Myanmar protesters against the military coup is unlikely to be’someone else’s work’. The tragedy of 5·18 comes to mind when I watch the horrors conveyed through foreign media every day. The people of Myanmar are also asking for active help from the Korean government and the people by comparing the history of Gwangju and the local situation in Myanmar through SNS.

Like two photographs that transcend time and space and overlapped with similar scenes, the Myanmar Incident and the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement are similar in start and progress. The military ministry of Myanmar initiated a coup last month on the grounds of “manipulating the general election,” and since then, anti-coup by citizens and protests calling for democratization have been continuing for more than a month. May 18 also occurred in the process of repressing student citizens who protested by the new military department, which took power in the 1979 12-12 military revolt.

The armed suppression of the military with a gun knife is also a common point between Myanmar and Gwangju. Myanmar’s military is mobilizing indiscriminate shooting, assault, and torture, including troops that have been engaged in combat with minority rebels, as well as troops that brutally suppressed anti-government protests in 2007. The history of massacre of citizens by Chun Doo-hwan’s military administration in Gwangju in 1980 seems to be recreated in Myanmar.

Armed suppression of the military and police leads to innocent sacrifices. According to the Myanmar Human Rights Organization Political Offender Support Association, the cumulative death toll after the coup has exceeded 250. As time goes by, the indiscriminate shooting of military and police is expected to increase even more as the protesters are taking place, regardless of age or sex.

The people who died or disappeared in Gwangju at the time of May 18 have not been clearly identified until now, 40 years later. During the Kim Dae-jung administration, a government-level investigation found that 193 people died and 48 people were missing, but the actual number of victims is estimated to be much higher as the reality of the black burial site has not been confirmed.

It is similar that martial law has been proclaimed that can control not only participants in the protests, but also all citizens in the region through military law. Myanmar’s military has enforced martial law in many areas of Yangon, the largest city, and is controlling and repressing citizens. As martial law makes normal economic activities difficult and safety is threatened, citizens are trying to escape. On the city streets, there is an escape procession of citizens who leave the city with household goods loaded on vehicles, motorcycles, and tricycles. At the time of May 18, when the Jeonnam Provincial Office’s suppression operation is imminent, the scenes of the citizens of Gwangju, who are’evacuating’ with their handcarts full of luggage, remain vivid in the faded black and white photographs.

Unlike the May 18 tragedy that was limited to the Gwangju area, the Myanmar crisis is happening simultaneously in major cities across the country, including the capital Naepido, Yangon and Mandalay. The class who participates in or sympathizes with the protests is spreading as a national protest movement, from college students to workers, monks, teachers, and public servants.

The tragic situation is not immediately known to the outside as the Chun Doo-hwan regime blocked Gwangju 40 years ago, blocking all media and communications, but the tragedy of Myanmar is spreading to countries around the world day after day through the Internet and social media. In Myanmar and Gwangju are different. Since the early days of the coup, Myanmar’s military has controlled the Internet, but it was not enough to discourage the citizens’ willingness to inform the international community.

The driving force behind the anti-military protests in Myanmar ready for death is a strong desire for democracy. It is a conviction that the democratic life experienced prior to the coup will not be regained unless it is confronted with oppression. As if the Republic of Korea, which achieved democracy through a difficult democratization struggle including the May 18, raised a candle against Gukjeong Nongdan.

Hong In-ki reporter [email protected]

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