제주4·3사건 진상규명위원회 / Jeju 4·3 Committee
한국어
2000년 1월 「제주4·3사건진상규명및희생자명예회복에관한특별법」에 따라 설치된 국무총리 소속 위원회. 진상조사, 희생자 심사·결정, 명예회복 사업을 담당. 진상조사보고서(2003)를 발간한 기관.
설치 배경
- 2000-01-12: 4·3특별법 공포. 국회 여야 합의, 1999-12-16 통과.
- 1960년 4·19혁명 후 최초 공개 논의 → 1961년 5·16 군사쿠데타로 재봉쇄 → 1987년 민주화 이후 재개 → 10년간의 시민운동 끝에 입법.1
주요 성과
| 연도 | 성과 |
|---|---|
| 2003 | 진상조사보고서 발간 / 노무현 대통령 공식 사과 (2003-10-31) |
| 2014 | 4월 3일 국가기념일 지정 |
| 2019 | 희생자 14,442명·유족 72,845명 추가 확인; 생존수형인 18명 재심 공소기각2 |
| 2021 | 특별법 전면 개정 — 국가배상·불법재판 무효화 근거 마련 |
English
The National Committee for Investigation of the Truth about the Jeju 4·3 Events (제주4·3사건 진상규명 및 희생자 명예회복위원회) is a government body established under the Prime Minister in January 2000 pursuant to the Special Act on Discovering the Truth of the Jeju 4·3 Incident and Restoration of Honor of Victims. It is the institutional engine of Korea’s official reckoning with the 4·3 period, responsible for truth investigation, victim recognition, and honor restoration.
Establishment
The Committee’s creation capped four decades of struggle. The April 3rd Incident was first publicly discussed after the April Revolution of 1960, then suppressed following the May 16 military coup of 1961. The democratic opening of 1987 reignited civil society advocacy, and a decade of organizing by bereaved families and civic groups culminated in the Special Act, passed by bipartisan parliamentary consensus on 16 December 1999 and promulgated on 12 January 2000.1
Key Achievements
| Year | Achievement |
|---|---|
| 2003 | Published the Jeju 4·3 Incident Investigation Report; President Roh Moo-hyun issued the first official state apology (31 October 2003) |
| 2014 | April 3 designated as a national commemoration day |
| 2019 | Confirmed 14,442 victims and 72,845 bereaved family members; 18 surviving convicts acquitted on retrial2 |
| 2021 | Special Act fully revised — legal basis established for state reparations and annulment of illegal military tribunals |
The Committee’s work is widely regarded as a model of transitional justice in East Asia: it moved sequentially through truth investigation, state apology, national commemoration, and eventually financial reparations — the full spectrum of transitional justice mechanisms.