He was sentenced to death in 1996 . Chun was later pardoned by President Kim Young-sam with the advice of then President-elect Kim Dae-jung , who had sentenced to death by Chun some 20 years earlier . Chun was sentenced to death in 1996 for his heavy-handed response to the Gwangju Democratization Movement , but later pardoned by President Kim Young-sam with the advice of then President-elect Kim Dae-jung , whom Chun himself had sentenced to death some 20 years earlier .