President Lee Jae-myung said on the 17th, in commemoration of the 77th anniversary of the Constitution Day, that "it would be good to review the plan to designate Constitution Day as a public holiday."
President Lee noted during a meeting of senior advisers held at the Presidential Office that "despite Constitution Day commemorating the establishment and proclamation of the Constitution, it seems to be the only national holiday referred to as 'Jeol' (day) that is not a holiday."
President Lee explained, "During the military coup situation on December 3rd last year, our citizens truly fulfilled their roles and responsibilities as sovereigns defined by the Constitution and restored the democratic constitutional order."
He added, "There is a need to particularly honor this and suggested, "How about making Constitution Day (designated as a public holiday) a good opportunity for the people to reflect on the spirit of the Constitution that the people are the owners of the state?"
Constitution Day is a day to celebrate the establishment of the Constitution of Korea. It was designated as a national holiday in 1949 and became a public holiday in 1950. However, it was excluded from public holidays starting in 2008. It is the only one of the five national holidays that is not a public holiday.
Since then, voices have continued to call for the reassignment of Constitution Day as a public holiday, and lawmakers have consistently proposed related bills without regard to political affiliation. The Legislative Research Service also stated in a report titled "The Need for Reassignment of Constitution Day as a Public Holiday and Key Issues" published on the 14th that "there is a need to restore its status as a national holiday" and emphasized that "it is necessary to designate Constitution Day as a public holiday to rekindle public interest in the Constitution."