The World - News from April 21, 1988

Thirty-one supporters of South Korea’s governing Democratic Justice Party, held hostage by political opponents, were released after police agreed to investigate a violent campaign clash. The 31 were freed by backers of the Party for Peace and Democracy in Youngam, about 125 miles south of Seoul. Violence has flared during the campaign for next Tuesday’s parliamentary election. Police said the trouble in Youngam, a stronghold of opposition leader Kim Dae Jung, apparently began over campaign leaflets. Press reports said the captives were stripped and their bodies painted red.