The Mungyeong Massacre ( ko, 문경 양민학살 사건,

Hanja Hanja (Hangul: ; Hanja: , ), alternatively known as Hancha, are Chinese characters () used in the writing of Korean. Hanja was used as early as the Gojoseon period, the first ever Korean kingdom. (, ) refers to Sino-Korean vocabulary, wh ...

: 聞慶良民虐殺事件) was a

massacre A massacre is the killing of a large number of people or animals, especially those who are not involved in any fighting or have no way of defending themselves. A massacre is generally considered to be morally unacceptable, especially when per ...

conducted by 2nd and 3rd platoon, 7th company, 3rd battalion, 25th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division of the South Korean Army on 24 December 1949 of 86 to 88 unarmed citizens in

Mungyeong Mungyeong ( ko, 문경 ' ()) is a city in North Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. The local government, economy, and transportation networks are all centered in Jeomchon, the principal town. Mungyeong has a lengthy history, and is known today for ...

North Gyeongsang North Gyeongsang Province ( ko, 경상북도, translit=Gyeongsangbuk-do, ) is a province in eastern South Korea. The province was formed in 1896 from the northern half of the former Gyeongsang province, and remained a province of Korea until the ...

district of

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

, all of whom were civilians and a majority of whom were children and elderly people. The victims included 32 children. The victims were massacred because they were suspected communist supporters or collaborators. However, the South Korean government blamed the crime on communist guerrillas for decades. On 26 June 2006, the

Truth and Reconciliation Commission of South Korea The Truth and Reconciliation Commission ( ko, 진실·화해를위한과거사정리위원회), established on December 1, 2005, is a Government of South Korea, South Korean governmental body responsible for investigating incidents in Korean h ...

concluded that the massacre was committed by the South Korean Army. However, a South Korean local court decided that charging the South Korean government with the massacre was barred by

statute of limitations A statute of limitations, known in civil law systems as a prescriptive period, is a law passed by a legislative body to set the maximum time after an event within which legal proceedings may be initiated. ("Time for commencing proceedings") In m ...

, as the five-year prescription ended in December 1954. On 10 February 2009, the South Korean high court also dismissed the victim's family complaint. In June 2011, the

Supreme Court of Korea The Supreme Court of Korea () is the highest ordinary court in the judicial branch of South Korea, seated in Seocho, Seoul. Established under Chapter 5 of the Constitution of South Korea, the Court has ultimate and comprehensive jurisdiction ...

decided that the South Korean government should compensate victims of the inhumane crimes it had committed regardless of the deadline to make the claim.

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국가범죄 '문경학살사건' 항소심서도 패소 판결

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

2009-08-06 {{DEFAULTSORT:Mungyeong Massacre Massacres in South Korea Political repression in South Korea Massacres committed by South Korea History of North Gyeongsang Province Political and cultural purges Military scandals 1949 in South Korea White Terror Massacres in 1949 First Republic of Korea Anti-communism in South Korea December 1949 events in Asia 1949 murders in South Korea

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