"Ah! May, May We Meet Again"... Scenes from the May 18 Eve Festival

Democratic Peace March to Take Place Near Geumnam Park on the 17th
Various Events Including Gwangju Human Rights Award and Youth Culture Festival
"We Will Strive to Embody the Spirit of May"

On the morning of the 17th, Ryu Seong, the general director, spoke at a press briefing of the 45th Anniversary 5.18 People's Uprising Commemoration Committee held at Jeonil Building 245 in Dong-gu, Gwangju. Photo by Yonhap News

An event led by a private organization to commemorate the 45th anniversary of the May 18 Democratization Movement will be held under the slogan "Ah! May, May We Meet Again."

The 45th May 18 Uprising Event Committee (the Committee) held a press conference on the morning of the 17th at Jeonil Building 245 in Dong-gu, Gwangju, to outline the May 18 eve festival and related events.

This year, the Committee will hold the eve event under the slogan "Ah! May, May We Meet Again" at the intersection near Geumnam Park on May 17-18. On the 17th, events such as Citizen Festival, March for Democratic Peace, Eve Festival, and May Pungmulgut Daedong Hanmadang will take place. On the 18th, there will be the Democratic Grand Rally and the Gwangju Human Rights Award Ceremony. Additionally, the May 18 Youth Culture Festival (subtitled: The Boy Is Coming) is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. on the 24th.

In previous years, the eve festival was held on the road in front of Jeonil Building 245 near the May 18 Democracy Square after the march, but this year it will be held at the intersection in front of Geumnamro Park, near Geumnamno 4-ga Station.

Following last year, the Youth PM (Project Manager) program will also be held this year. This year's PM is designed with the goal of making the voices of youth, sparked by the December 3 Coup, the focal point of the May 18 Uprising Commemoration Event.

This year's selected Youth PM, Im Chaebin, is planning a project titled "Youth, Continuing May," which aims to create cultural content about the May 18 Uprising and reinterpret the event through various media such as webtoons, exhibitions, music, and theater targeting the younger generation.

The main event, held on the 24th in the Geumnamro area, will feature participation booths, street performances, a democratic rally, themed exhibitions, and flash mobs, as well as additional programs like escape room games, quizzes about May and democracy, Geumnamro Playground, and Geumnamro Cafeteria.

The annual citizen participation project is a public contest in which citizens directly plan and execute projects. Through this, areas not covered by the Committee's 45th anniversary projects will be supplemented by citizen-proposed initiatives.

Oh Byungyun, chair of the Committee, stated, "We are working hard to embody the spirit of May in the upcoming 45th anniversary May 18 Uprising Commemoration Event," and added, "We ask for the interest and participation of citizens who hope to meet May again after the December 3 Coup."