Coup D'etat and Major Chun
In December 1979, Major General Chun Doo-hwan and close allies within the military staged a coup d'état against Choi's government. They quickly removed the army chief of staff and virtually controlled the government by early 1980.
In April 1980, due to increasing pressure from Chun and other politicians, Choi appointed Chun head of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency. In May, Chun declared martial law and dropped all pretense of civilian government, becoming the de facto ruler of the country. By then, student protests were escalating in Seou and Gwangju. The protests in Gwangju resulted in the Gwangju uprising in which about 987 civilians were killed within a five day period by Chun's military.
Read more about this topic: Choi Kyu-hah
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