May 21 and May 22, 1980, were two of the most critical days of the Gwangju Uprising. On May 21, Chun Doo Hwan’s martial law forces opened fire on hundreds of citizens surrounding the old Provincial Capital building; 60 people were killed and over 400 were injured. On May 22, in Washington, the Carter administration’s top national security officials met at the White House and decided to support Chun’s martial law army in retaking the city from the rebellious citizens of Gwangju. These are the CIA’s cables from Seoul to Washington during those days.
5/21/1980 – “Two days of large-scale rioting in Kwangju turned into a full-blown insurrection today.”
5/22/1980 – “Violence has spread to about 16 towns within a 50-mile radius of Kwangju, all in South Cholla Province….Most government forces have been withdrawn from Kwangju, as negotiations are being conducted between the Martial Law Commander in Kwangju and a local citizens group, which includes the Archbishop and some associates of Kim Dae Jung.”
5/22/1980 – “The insurrection in Kwangju in Cholla-namdo Province poses a serious challenge to the Martial Law Command’s authority…The military is trying to negotiate a cease-fire, but it probably will have to use force to end the rebellion. While the regional antagonism in Cholla-namdo does not exist elsewhere, dissidents in other provincial cities and in Seoul may be encouraged by the events in Kwangju. The military would be hard pressed to deal with simultaneous uprisings of the same magnitude in other areas.”
