From social media to the National Assembly, South Korea's right-wing politicians on Wednesday marked the first anniversary of the Dec. 3 martial law debacle with apologies.
In front of the National Assembly Library in Seoul, Han Dong-hoon, the former leader of the conservative opposition People Power Party, bowed deeply in apology, saying the party had failed the public in the political crisis triggered by former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s declaration of martial law on Dec. 3, 2024.
“I deeply apologize to the public for failing to prevent the declaration of martial law in advance,” he said.
Han, once a close aide to Yoon, served as the leader of the then-ruling PPP. Relations between the two had become strained over the course of 2024, and Han was among party members who opposed Yoon's decree on the night of the martial law.
Inside the Assembly building, a group of PPP lawmakers held a joint press conference, where they pledged to sever political ties with former President Yoon and reform the right from the ground up.
Twenty-five party members signed the joint statement, which also included an apology for the party's failture to prevent the martial law crisis.
Seperately, PPP Floor Leader Rep. Song Eon-seog held a press conference Wednesday, also at the Assembly, to apologize "on behalf of the party’s 107 lawmakers."
“I stand here today on behalf of the 107 People Power Party lawmakers who either took part in or were unable to take part in last year’s vote to lift martial law,” he said, adding, “All of our party’s lawmakers feel a heavy sense of responsibility for failing to prevent a situation that shocked the public.”
Hours earlier, party Chair Rep. Jang Dong-hyeok wrote on Facebook he felt a sense of responsibility for the martial law declaration, though he did not offer an explicit apology, and added that the martial law order was a response to the now-ruling Democratic Party of Korea’s “parliamentary tyranny.”
(Photos by Yonhap)
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