The government on Friday included descriptions of the May 18, 1980 Democratic Movement and several other important events in Korea’s modern history in a draft of its new writing guidelines for textbooks to be used at high schools across the country.

The guidelines, if finalized, will serve as a key reference for textbook writers.

The move came after the education ministry triggered strong protests from liberal historians and related organizations last month for failing to include descriptions of the events in revised writing guidelines for textbooks to be used in middle schools.

According to the draft announced by the National Institute of Korean History, textbook writers must describe major democratic movements in modern Korean history such as the May 18 Democratic Movement, a popular uprising of Gwangju citizens against the dictatorship of former President Chun Doo-hwan in 1980; the April 19, 1960 student revolution and the people’s struggle for democracy in June 1987.

Writers were also required to touch on the April 3, 1948 uprising on Jeju and past South Korean governments’ efforts to punish those who collaborated with Japan during its 1910-45 colonial rule of Korea.

In addition, the draft adopted such expressions as “free democracy” and “free-democratic basic order” and “dictatorship.”

The institute is set to submit the final version of the guidelines to the ministry by Wednesday after collecting opinions from academic circles. The ministry will then screen and announce the revised guidelines on Dec. 30.
 

(Yonhap News)