Jeonbuk National University (JBNU) Archives and History Museum, University Museum, and JBNU Student Council organized an event to invite the leading figures of the JBNU April 4 protest that sparked the April 19 Revolution.

'Meet the Leaders of the Nation's First Student Demonstration: JBNU's April 4 Protest' — a special lecture — was held on the 19th at 2:00 PM in the JBNU University Museum Auditorium. Jeon Dae-yeol, a third-year Political Science student at the time and an alumnus (71, President of the Korea Association of Political Commentators), who led the protest, served as the speaker and shared vivid accounts and the significance of the April 4 protest.

The April 4 protest at JBNU took place 14 days before the April 18 Korea University protest, which is known as the forerunner of the April 19 student uprisings. Students at JBNU, who had returned from vacation and resumed classes, staged a collective demonstration at the university's main gate.

Mr. Jeon said he had repeatedly raised this issue in newspaper and magazine contributions over the past 50 years, but it failed to attract attention and did not gain traction under the military dictatorship. He added that during the democratization struggle he was imprisoned and subjected to repression, which left him unable to continue asserting these claims.

He said, 'Through sources such as the Dongguk University History of the April 19 Revolution, the Jeonbuk Ilbo article dated April 5, 1960, and the Jeonbuk University Newspaper article dated May 13, 1960, I confirmed that the April 4 protest preceded the April 18 Korea University protest.' He explained, 'The students who led the protest were taken to the police station and questioned for three days.'

He stated, 'At around 10:00 AM on April 4, 1960, approximately 700 students gathered behind the current graduate school building to read the Declaration of Democracy and to condemn the March 15 fraudulent election.' He added, 'Although it is regrettable that the protest did not spread into a mass demonstration, its significance lies in having been the nation's earliest protest condemning the fraudulent election.'

He added, 'While I do not intend to contest the designation of the Korea University April 18 protest as the first university student protest, we must not ignore the historical facts.'

In this context, the 50th Anniversary April 19 Revolution Commemoration Committee erected monuments at eight locations nationwide, including the JBNU campus, in 2010 with support from the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs. A monument inscribed with: 'On April 4, 1960, a student protest denouncing dictatorship and electoral fraud took place, and large-scale student demonstrations on April 20 and 24, 1960 accelerated the completion of the April 19 Revolution' was erected beside the former main gate of JBNU on November 25, 2010.

Lee Jong-chul, Curator at the University Museum, said, 'Students are focused solely on building careers for employment and have little interest in the history of student movements.' He added, 'I hope this event awakened students' awareness and served as an opportunity to carry forward the passion of their predecessors.'