Park Jong-chul
{{Short description|South Korean activist (1965–1987)}}
{{Distinguish|Pak Jong-chol (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox person
| pre-nominals =
| name = Park Jong-chul
| module = {{Infobox Korean|child=yes
| hangul = 박종철
| hanja = 朴鐘哲
| rr = Bak Jongcheol
| mr = Pak Chongch'ŏl
}}
| image = Park Jong Cheol Memorial Room in Namyeongdong Daegong Bunsil (cropped).jpg
| image_upright =
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| birth_date = {{Birth date|1965|4|1}}
| birth_place = Busan, South Korea
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1987|1|14|1965|4|1}}{{cite news |url=http://newslibrary.naver.com/viewer/index.nhn?articleId=1987052200209210002&editNo=2&printCount=1&publishDate=1987-05-22&officeId=00020&pageNo=10&printNo=20194&publishType=00020 |title= 朴鐘哲군 拷問致死 사건日誌 |trans-title=The timeline of Bak Jong-cheol torture incident |website=Naver news library |publisher=The Dong-A Ilbo |date=1987-05-22 |access-date=2018-01-14}}
| death_place = {{ill|Anti-Communist Detached Office|ko|남영동 대공분실}}, Karwol-dong, Yongsan District, Seoul, South Korea
| death_cause = Asphyxiation by torture in the form of water cure
| body_discovered =
| burial_place = Moran Park, Hwado-eup Namyangju, South Korea
| burial_coordinates = {{coord|37|38|45.2|N|127|19|14.4|E|type:landmark|display=inline}}
| monuments =
| nationality = South Korean
| other_names =
| alma_mater = Seoul National University
| occupation = University Student
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}}
Park Jong-chul{{Family name footnote|Park|lang=Korean}} ({{Korean|hangul=박종철}}; April 1, 1965 – January 14, 1987) was a South Korean democracy movement activist. His death by torture was a key factor in sparking the June Democratic Struggle, which led to the democratization of South Korea.
Biography
In the 1980s, as president of the student council in the linguistics department of Seoul National University, he was one of activists in universities struggling against Chun Doo-hwan's dictatorship and the aftermath of the 1980 Gwangju Massacre. Detained during an investigation into such activities, Park refused to confess the whereabouts of one of his fellow activists. During the interrogation, authorities used waterboarding techniques to torture him in the National Police Headquarters' Anti-Communist Division, leading to his death on 14 January.{{Cite news |last=Yoo |first=Jong-pil |date=January 30, 2018 |title=[Yoo Jong-pil] The creation of the 1987 Park Jong-cheol Street and Memorial Hall |url=https://www.koreaherald.com/article/1572315 |access-date=February 2, 2025 |work=The Korea Herald}}{{cite news |last=Clyde Haberman and Special To the New York Times |date=31 January 1987 |title=SEOUL STUDENT'S TORTURE DEATH CHANGES POLITICAL LANDSCAPE |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/01/31/world/seoul-student-s-torture-death-changes-political-landscape.html |accessdate=25 April 2018 |work=The New York Times |publisher=}}
A doctor from Chung-Ang University Hospital, Oh Yeon-sang, arrived at the scene and performed CPR for 30 minutes before eventually giving up. Once he told the officers of Park's death, he later recalled that "they rolled his body in a blanket and shoved it in an elevator.{{Cite web |date=2017-01-12 |title=30 years on, son's murder still haunts family |url=https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/2017/01/12/socialAffairs/30-years-on-sons-murder-still-haunts-family/3028599.html |access-date=2025-02-02 |website=Korea JoongAng Daily |language=en}}
In January 15, Oh was interviewed by multiple reporters who came to his office. The authorities, later that day, detained and interrogated him for 20 hours; afterwards Oh fled to Seoul outskirts for a week.
Information surrounding the events of Park's death was initially suppressed, with the police attributing the death to a shock.{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=1987-01-19 |title=Torture by Police Suspected in Death of South Korean Student |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-01-19-mn-4043-story.html |access-date=2025-02-02 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}} His death by torture helped spark the June Democracy Movement of 1987.
His death, including the events of its immediate aftermath, was subject of the movie 1987: When the Day Comes.
See also
Notes
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References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [http://870114cheol-a.org Martyr for Democracy Bak Jongcheol Memorial Association] {{in lang|ko}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Park, Jong-chul}}
Category:South Korean democracy activists
Category:Korean torture victims
{{SouthKorea-bio-stub}}