Violence Mars Memorial of South Korean Massacre

KWANGJU, South Korea — Student violence erupted in the southern city of Kwangju on Friday as residents prepared to mourn victims of a 1980 army massacre in the first officially sponsored anniversary ceremonies.

More than 300 students wielding iron bars and hurling Molotov cocktails fought pitched battles with riot police around Chosun University, witnesses said.

They were among a crowd of 3,000 students who had massed on the campus for funeral rites to honor a student who died of a heart attack during anti-government protests.

Funeral ceremonies were timed to coincide with Sunday’s anniversary of the massacre of pro-democracy students.

Riot police fired volleys of tear gas to prevent the students from marching into the streets, witnesses said.

This year’s anniversary of the Kwangju massacre has added significance because the main perpetrators of the killings, former Presidents Chun Doo Hwan and Roh Tae Woo, are now behind bars. They were jailed on charges of mutiny, treason and corruption.

Officially, about 200 people were killed when paratroopers stormed Kwangju in 1980 to put down a revolt against Chun’s martial-law rule. Some residents put the death toll as high as 2,000.