May 18 Foundation: "Glorifying Roh Tae-woo Is an Outrage That Dilutes the Wrongdoings of the New Military Regime"

"All Copies of the 'Roh Tae-woo Comic Book' Distributed Nationwide Must Be Recalled"

The May 18 Memorial Foundation has condemned the efforts to glorify the late former President Roh Tae-woo, who was a key figure in the military junta and involved in the May 18 Democratization Movement.

On the 16th, the May 18 Memorial Foundation issued a press release stating, "The recent biography titled 'The Story of a Person in Comics, President Roh Tae-woo' is an outrageous act that dilutes the historical wrongdoings committed by the military junta."

The foundation pointed out, "This comic biography of Roh Tae-woo has been distributed to libraries nationwide. This took place during a period of national unrest under martial law. While many recall the specter of the military junta represented by Chun Doo-hwan, Roh Tae-woo, and 'Hanahoe' during these events, the Roh family has been distributing books glorifying Roh Tae-woo to more than 20 libraries across the country."

They added, "This is a clear distortion of history and a base attempt at glorification. According to our own investigation, the majority of the more than 20 libraries have classified this book as children's literature and placed it in sections intended for young readers."

Furthermore, "Roh Tae-woo was a key figure in the military junta, deeply involved in the December 12 military coup and the violent suppression of the May 18 Democratization Movement," they said. "Despite being sentenced to 17 years in prison for these wrongdoings and being a criminal in the eyes of history, his family is not reflecting on the past but instead is attempting to glorify it."

They continued, "Civil society, including the May 18 Memorial Foundation, has already strongly raised issues regarding the Roh family's illicit wealth and historical distortion," adding, "In the past, Roh Tae-woo referred to the May 18 Democratization Movement as the 'Gwangju Incident' in his memoirs, and although there have been repeated demands for corrections, his son Roh Jae-heon, despite multiple public promises during his visits to Gwangju, has failed to take any action."

Additionally, "Any attempt to distort history must be recognized as an act that undermines the foundation of democracy," they emphasized, "The nationwide distribution of Roh Tae-woo's biography to libraries should be immediately halted, and all distributed copies should be recalled."