The first incident in Eoeum Village (어음리) occurred on August 1, 1948 when a 29 year old man named Kim Yongha (김용하) was discovered in the village. At that time the suppression forces generally regarded any young man as being a potential member of the armed resistance, and he was executed on the spot (there is no evidence that Kim Yongha was a member of the armed resistance). On November 19, 1948 suppression forces came to Eoeum Village and gathered all of the residents together. A list of names were called, and in the end seven young people were taken to Hallim and then executed the following day. On November 20, 1948 an evacuation notice from the government was issued and Eoeum Village was in the area affected. By November 22 the village had been destroyed through the 'scorched earth' policy. The residents of Eoeum Village moved to places like Bongseong Village and Gwakji.

Suppression forces discovered Billemotgul on January 16, 1949. People had been hiding there either from the police - who would often shoot young men on sight - or because of the forced evacuation order affecting all of the villages in Jeju's mid-mountain region.

Suppression forces tried to entice people out by promising that they would be spared and not to worry. This was of course a lie, and anyone who came out was almost immediately shot and executed.

Survivors of the incident testified to some of the extreme cruelty displayed by the suppression forces that day. The most notable example involved a young boy. Reportedly the suppression force grabbed the boy about the age of 3-4 by the legs and threw him against a rock, killing him. Another woman reportedly grabbed her baby daughter and fled deeper into the cave. Tragically she supposedly got lost in the dark depths of Billemotgul and could not find her way back out later and the two of them perished.

In total, 29 people died at Billemotgul.

References and Original Sources

Jeju 4.3 Archives - "빌레못굴" (readable here in Korean)

Jeju Dark Tours - "빌레못굴" (readable here in Korean)