March 15 Uprising

Overview

The March 15 Uprising (March 15 Masan Uprising) was a civic and student uprising that took place in Masan, South Gyeongsang Province, in protest against the fraudulent election held on March 15, 1960, for the 4th President and 5th Vice President of South Korea. It consisted of a first uprising on the evening of election day and a second uprising that followed the discovery of the body of missing student Kim Ju-yeol floating in the sea on April 11. The uprising sparked nationwide resistance and led to the April 19 Revolution.

Background: The March 15 Fraudulent Election

Syngman Rhee announced in 1959 his intention to run again, and the Liberal Party nominated Rhee and Lee Ki-bung as its presidential and vice-presidential candidates. After Democratic Party presidential candidate Cho Pyong-ok died on February 15, 1960 while receiving treatment in the United States, Rhee's victory became certain, and the contest turned on the vice-presidency, which carried the right of succession, between Lee Ki-bung and Chang Myon.

According to the Encyclopedia of Korean Culture, Home Affairs Minister Choi In-kyu secretly ordered a plan, using police and public officials, to raise the Liberal Party candidates' vote share to 85% through means such as so-called "40% advance voting," open voting in groups of three and five, the use of armband-wearing squads, and the expulsion of opposition party observers. So many locations reported vote shares of 95 to 99% during the counting process that he even ordered them to be lowered. The final tally was 88.7% for Syngman Rhee and 79% for Lee Ki-bung.

First Uprising (March 15)

According to the chronology compiled by the Korea Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs' National March 15 National Cemetery, the course of events was as follows:

• At 10:30 a.m., the Masan City Committee of the Democratic Party (Odong-dong) declared the election void and withdrew from it after confirming irregularities at the polling stations.
• From 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., about 30 Democratic Party executives staged the first demonstration, and about 600 people faced off with police at Buljong-geori, where stone-throwing began.
• At around 6:30 p.m., thousands gathered on the road from Muhak Elementary School to Masan Provincial Hospital and clashed with police.
• Around 8:00 p.m., a fire truck crashed into a utility pole, and central Masan lost power.
• At 8:10 p.m., police opened fire in front of City Hall and in front of the Namseong-dong police box.
• At 9:00 p.m., police carried out indiscriminate shooting in the areas of City Hall, the Namseong-dong police box, and the Bukmasan police box. The protesters then set fire to the Bukmasan police box (around 9:30 p.m.) and attacked the homes of Liberal Party National Assembly members, among other targets, and dispersed around 11:30 p.m.