Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, visited Damyang, Jeollanam-do, on the 22nd and said regarding the impeachment trial of President Yoon Suk-yeol, "If President Yoon's impeachment is dismissed and he returns, this country will become lawless and ultimately fail."
On the same day, Lee visited the region for the first support campaign of the April 2 by-elections, stating, "If the impeachment is dismissed, the president can invade the National Assembly at any time and organize a martial law, and it means he can deploy the military to drag lawmakers out of the National Assembly whenever he wants."
Lee also emphasized, "The center of the ongoing revolution is Honam," noting, "The nation exists because of Honam, and the center of democracy in the Republic of Korea is led by Honam." He added, "The country is at a crossroads of prosperity or failure, and some believe it's inappropriate to chase the Damyang county mayoral election when we should be fully devoted to overcoming internal unrest. This is not an incorrect statement," and stressed, "The reason I came here is that the public will confirm their will toward democracy through this election."
Lee mentioned recent media reports that the Army secured body bags, called 'Yeonghyeonbaek,' in preparation for possible martial law, saying, "Although it was elegantly expressed as Yeonghyeonbaek, isn't it a corpse bag?" and noted, "It could lead to a horrific situation." However, the Army clarified that the acquisition of the equipment was a planned measure based on the 2022 Joint Chiefs of Staff's guidelines and has nothing to do with emergency martial law.