Korean Political History I: Chapter 5, Exercise 3 — Possible Solution
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TASK
Explain why 11 April and 25 April were turning points, and name one thing the
chapter could not explain.

ANSWER
11 APRIL: a fisherman in Masan harbor found the body of Kim Ju-yul, a
student. Protesters found his skull had been split by a tear-gas grenade,
contradicting the official claim that he drowned. This turned a rigged
election into an argument about the government's honesty and violence.
25 APRIL: professors joined students and citizens in large protests that
outnumbered the soldiers and police, who refused to attack the protesters.
The next day, 26 April, Rhee resigned.

WHY THEY MATTER
On 11 April the official account failed; on 25 April the government's
instruments of force stopped obeying. The source on the revolution describes
both.

ONE THING NOT EXPLAINED
Why the soldiers and police refused to attack, and what role the US
government or the army leadership played. The sources do not say.