President Moon Jae-in commemorated the 41st anniversary of the May 18 pro-democracy Gwangju Uprising, saying that the nation is "approaching the final truth.”

The president made the remark on Tuesday on his Facebook and Twitter accounts in commemoration of the 1980 democratization movement in the southwestern city.

Moon said that last week, former soldiers testified that even machine guns and snipers were mobilized to open fire on civilians. 

The president thanked those people who came forward to give "courageous" testimonies, stressing that the country is coming closer to the truth surrounding the Gwangju uprising thanks to those people. 

The president also expressed his sympathy for people in Myanmar, saying that South Korea is seeing yesterday's Gwangju in today's Myanmar. 

Moon also mentioned Jurgen Hinzpeter, a German journalist, who covered the uprising and helped the outside world know about the tragic incident.

The president wrote that he eagerly hopes that Gwangju and Hinzpeter's journalistic spirit will offer hope to Myanmar.