Jeon Du-hwan Appears in Gwangju Court Ahead of the 40th Anniversary of the May 18 Democratic Uprising

Former President Jeon Du-hwan is moving to the courthouse on the 27th to appear as a defendant at the Gwangju District Court. Jeon was brought to trial on charges of defamation for criticizing the late Father Jo Bi-o, who testified to witnessing helicopter gunfire during the May 18 Democratic Uprising, as a "shameless liar unworthy of being called a clergyman" in his memoir published in April 2017.
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kang Juhee] Former President Jeon Du-hwan (89) appeared in the Gwangju court as a defendant ahead of the 40th anniversary of the May 18 Democratic Movement.

It has been about a year since he last appeared in court as a defendant in a defamation case involving the deceased in March of last year.

The Gwangju District Court Criminal Division 8 (Chief Judge Kim Jeong-hoon) held a trial for Jeon, who was indicted on charges of defaming the deceased, on the 27th at 2 p.m. in Courtroom 201.

Jeon was indicted for claiming in his 2017 memoir that the late Father Jo Bio's testimony witnessing helicopter gunfire was false, and for criticizing Father Jo as "a shameless liar unworthy of being called a clergyman."

Jeon had previously been indicted without detention in May 2018 and had requested two postponements of the trial for preparation. The preparatory hearing, for which the defendant was not required to attend, proceeded normally on July 11, 2018, but he did not appear at the subsequent two trial dates.

Before the first trial date on August 27, 2018, his wife Lee Soon-ja claimed that her husband had Alzheimer's disease, leading to his absence, and he did not attend the trial on January 7 last year due to the flu.

When the court issued a warrant for his detention, Jeon expressed his intention to appear voluntarily and appeared in court on March 11 of that year.

It is known that on the 20th, Jeon's side requested the court to allow his wife Lee Soon-ja to accompany him in court as a trusted person.

When Jeon first appeared in the Gwangju court on March 11 last year, he was also accompanied by his wife Lee Soon-ja with the judge's permission.

Contrary to claims of Jeon's health problems, social criticism arose when he was spotted playing golf with close aides and enjoying lavish dinners in Hongcheon, Gangwon Province last year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.