KB News Desk
South Korea will revoke military decorations awarded to 76 people for their involvement in the Dec. 12, 1979, military coup, the suppression of the 1980 Gwangju Democratic Uprising and related martial law operations, the Defense Ministry said Tuesday.
In the Dec. 12 coup, former President Chun Doo-hwan led a rebellion with other officers to seize control of the armed forces. The group later expanded martial law nationwide and deployed troops to suppress pro-democracy protests in the southwestern city of Gwangju in May 1980.
According to the ministry, the Cabinet approved the revocations earlier in the day, saying the honors had been awarded unlawfully or based on false claims of merit.
Of the 76 recipients, 42 were decorated for contributions to national security. The ministry said authorities found that their cited achievements were false and that the awards had been granted without following the required Cabinet review process.
The remaining 34 received honors for martial law duties. The ministry said courts have determined that the martial law measures constituted insurrection and an attempt to subvert the constitutional order.
The duties performed by the Martial Law Command and its subordinate units assisted the military leadership’s unlawful seizure of power and therefore could not be considered meritorious service, the ministry added.
The ministry said it would continue reviewing past decorations and revoke any honors found to have been based on false achievements or serious procedural defects.
The latest decision follows the ministry’s March revocation of Chungmu Orders of Military Merit awarded to 10 key participants in the Dec. 12 coup.
