What to See in Gwangju - Top Sights and Attractions

Multi-purpose stadium in Gwangju, South Korea. The Gwangju World Cup Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in the South Korean city of Gwangju. It is managed by the Sports Support Division of the Culture & Sports Policy Office of the Gwangju Metropolitan city. Initially the stadium was named Gwangju World Cup Stadium to host some matches of the 2002 FIFA World Cup. To honour the former South Korean national team coach Guus Hiddink, who helped the team advance to the semi-finals, for the first time in its history, by defeating Spain in this stadium, they have also named it the Guus Hiddink Stadium.

It is the home stadium of Gwangju FC of the Korea Professional Football League (K League) and has a capacity of 40,245.

It was also the venue for the 3rd Asia Song Festival, organised by Korea Foundation for International Culture Exchange, in 2006.

It was also the main venue for 2015 Summer Universiade.^[3]

The Gwangju Uprising was a popular uprising in the city of Gwangju, South Korea, from May 18 to May 27, 1980, which pitted local, armed citizens against soldiers and police of the South Korean government. The event is sometimes called 5·18, in reference to the date the movement began. The uprising is also known as the Gwangju Democratization Struggle, the Gwangju Massacre, the May 18 Democratic Uprising, or the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement.

The uprising began after local Chonnam University students who were demonstrating against the martial law government were fired upon, killed, raped and beaten by government troops. Some Gwangju citizens took up arms, raiding local police stations and armouries, and were able to take control of large sections of the city before soldiers re-entered the city and put down the uprising. At the time, the South Korean government reported estimates of around 170 people killed, but other estimates have measured 600 to 2,300 people killed. During Chun Doo-hwan's unelected presidency, the authorities defined the incident by classifying it as the ''Gwangju Riot,'' and claimed that it was being instigated by "communist sympathizers and rioters", possibly acting on support of the North Korean government.

Denial of or support for the Gwangju Uprising has long acted as a litmus test between conservative and far-right groups and beliefs, and mainstream and progressive sectors of the population, within modern Korean politics. The far-right groups have sought to discredit the uprising. One such argument points to the fact that it occurred before Chun Doo-hwan officially took office, and so contend that it could not really have been a simple student protest against him that started it. However, Chun Doo-hwan had become the de facto leader of South Korea at that time since coming into power on December 12, 1979, after leading a successful military coup against the previous South Korean government which was itself also authoritarian.

In 1997, a national cemetery and day of commemoration (May 18), along with acts to "compensate, and restore honor" to victims, were established. Later investigations would confirm various atrocities which had been committed by the army. In 2011, 1980 Archives for the May 18th Democratic Uprising against Military Regime located in Gwangju's city hall were inscribed on the UNESCO Memory of the World Register.^[7]