S Koreans send off former President Roh in small funeral

By KIM TONG-HYUNG
Associated Press

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Dozens of relatives and dignitaries have gathered in South Korea’s capital to pay their final respects to former President Roh Tae-woo. He was a key participant in a 1979 military coup who later won a landmark democratic election before his political career ended with imprisonment for corruption and treason. The government’s decision to hold the state funeral was controversial because of Roh’s connections to the coup and a bloody suppression of pro-democracy protesters in Gwangju that killed 200 people in 1980. Gwangju and several other cities refused to raise flags half-staff or set up memorial altars for Roh. President Moon Jae-in, who skipped the memorial, says Roh’s contributions to national development were significant despite many historical wrongdoings.