Fiery Hong Kong student protests evoke memory of South Korea’s own 1987 June Struggle
- On social media, photos of tear gas-filled protests at Chinese University are being compared with those of the student-led rallies against dictator Chun Doo-hwan
- South Korean students are also clashing with mainland Chinese over their support for Hong Kong’s protests
More than 2,000 students at Yonsei University, one of the country’s top universities, fought with police on campus in 1987 to protest against military strongman Chun Doo-hwan and call for democracy.
Known as the June Struggle, or June Democracy Movement of 1987, the demonstrations in Seoul continued for nearly a month and led to the death of Lee Han-yeol, who was hit and killed by a tear-gas canister.
The protests finally ended on June 29, 1987, when presidential hopeful Roh Tae-woo promised to amend the constitution to accede to the protesters’ eight demands: holding direct elections for a president; allowing free candidature and fair elections; restoring freedom of the press; establishing social reforms; ensuring human rights and the right of habeas corpus; increasing local and education autonomy; enabling political dialogue and compromise; and granting amnesty to political prisoners.
