In the midst of the chaos following President Park Chung-hee's assassination in October 1979, then-army commander Chun Doo-hwan staged a military coup and seized power, crushing people's hope for true democracy. Enraged by the emergency of a new military dictatorship, people of Gwangju first rose up to oppose Chun's tyranny and declaration of nationwide martial law. On May 18th students of Chonnam National University clashed with the armed soldiers of the 7th Airborne Brigade, who wielded ruthless violence against the unarmed civilians. The bloody massacre that lasted for the next ten days left hundreds killed, injured and missing, and left a number of unanswered questions to this day. But the sacrifices of the people of Gwangju have powered the Korean people's irreversible march toward democracy, which eventually set off the landmark democratic movement in 1987.