SUH Sung [Endowed-Chair Professor, Woosuk University]
Delusional and reckless insurrection of President Yoon was thwarted by the courageous citizen’s resistance and the swift resolution by the National Assembly, ultimately resulting in his impeachment. Now, we are just at the corner of a change of administration and it appears that the promise to include the expression “to inherit the spirit of the May 18 Democratization Movement” in the preamble of the Constitution will be fulfilled. As Gwangju’s long-awaited aspiration since 1987 is about to be realized, it seems we need to take time to properly articulate the significance of integrating the spirit of the May 18 into the constitutional preamble.
The reason for including the spirit in the constitutional preamble is to acknowledge the fact the May 18 Movement itself was pivotal in ushering the nation in democratization. It also aims to prevent the anti-historical distortions and regressions that have labeled those engaged in the May 18 Movement as rioters, communists, or the North Korean soldiers and to firmly establish it as a noble democratization movement beyond any further controversy. I definitely support the attempt to include the constitutional essence of the May 18 in the preamble, however, I wonder, if we just rely on the constitutional authority to protect the spirit of May 18 it could be misguided. The Gwangju May 18 Movement should be remembered as a meaningful triumph against the state violence throughout human history beyond the Korean Constitutional framework.
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Delusional and reckless insurrection of President Yoon was thwarted by the courageous citizen’s resistance and the swift resolution by the National Assembly, ultimately resulting in his impeachment. Now, we are just at the corner of a change of administration and it appears that the promise to include the expression “to inherit the spirit of the May 18 Democratization Movement” in the preamble of the Constitution will be fulfilled. As Gwangju’s long-awaited aspiration since 1987 is about to be realized, it seems we need to take time to properly articulate the significance of integrating the spirit of the May 18 into the constitutional preamble.
Gwangju, Rising as “City of Resistance”
SUH Sung [Endowed-Chair Professor, Woosuk University]
Delusional and reckless insurrection of President Yoon was thwarted by the courageous citizen’s resistance and the swift resolution by the National Assembly, ultimately resulting in his impeachment. Now, we are just at the corner of a change of administration and it appears that the promise to include the expression “to inherit the spirit of the May 18 Democratization Movement” in the preamble of the Constitution will be fulfilled. As Gwangju’s long-awaited aspiration since 1987 is about to be realized, it seems we need to take time to properly articulate the significance of integrating the spirit of the May 18 into the constitutional preamble.
The reason for including the spirit in the constitutional preamble is to acknowledge the fact the May 18 Movement itself was pivotal in ushering the nation in democratization. It also aims to prevent the anti-historical distortions and regressions that have labeled those engaged in the May 18 Movement as rioters, communists, or the North Korean soldiers and to firmly establish it as a noble democratization movement beyond any further controversy. I definitely support the attempt to include the constitutional essence of the May 18 in the preamble, however, I wonder, if we just rely on the constitutional authority to protect the spirit of May 18 it could be misguided. The Gwangju May 18 Movement should be remembered as a meaningful triumph against the state violence throughout human history beyond the Korean Constitutional framework.
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Delusional and reckless insurrection of President Yoon was thwarted by the courageous citizen’s resistance and the swift resolution by the National Assembly, ultimately resulting in his impeachment. Now, we are just at the corner of a change of administration and it appears that the promise to include the expression “to inherit the spirit of the May 18 Democratization Movement” in the preamble of the Constitution will be fulfilled. As Gwangju’s long-awaited aspiration since 1987 is about to be realized, it seems we need to take time to properly articulate the significance of integrating the spirit of the May 18 into the constitutional preamble.