On the 18th, the 46th anniversary of the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement, the leaders of the ruling and opposition parties all headed to Gwangju. The Democratic Party of Korea ramped up its offensive against the People Power Party, which opposed a constitutional amendment that includes enshrining the spirit of the May 18 Democratization Movement in the preamble. The People Power Party focused on forging a springboard for conservative unity ahead of the local elections by pushing through the chilly public sentiment in Gwangju.
Party leader Jung Chung-rae and the leadership visited Gwangju that day and carried out a schedule related to the May 18 Democratization Movement. Starting with a visit to the National May 18 Democratic Cemetery, they sounded out public sentiment in Gwangju by holding a meeting of the on-site central election committee and attending a commemorative ceremony. There, the Democratic Party promised to push again for a constitutional amendment that includes enshrining the spirit of the May 18 Democratization Movement in the preamble, while criticizing the People Power Party for opposing it.
At the on-site central election committee meeting that day, Jung said, "To the souls of May, and to the people who worked to enshrine in the Constitution the spirit of the May 18 Democratization Movement and the Busan-Masan Uprising, especially the citizens of Gwangju, I am sorry and I apologize," and added, "In these local elections, we will surely judge the insurrectionary forces that plunged the constitutional order into crisis and write history that sets democracy straight."
He went on, "We will make the Democratic Party one that carries on the May spirit and opens the future of democracy," and "Including the spirit of the May 18 Democratization Movement in the preamble to the Constitution is the wish of the majority of the people who defended democracy. We will do our utmost," pledging to push the amendment again.
He added, "There are forces that chant 'Yoon Again' (supporting Yoon Suk-yeol) and seek to reestablish Yoon Suk-yeol as the ringleader of an insurrection," and said, "That is why May in Gwangju has not ended, and the Dec. 3 martial-law insurrection has still not ended and is ongoing."
People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok also visited Gwangju that day to attend the ceremony. However, the local mood was not friendly toward them. Unlike the Democratic Party leadership, who entered the venue through the same passage as citizens, the People Power Party leadership used a separate passage prepared by the organizers. It was to prevent any possible clashes. When Jang actually got out of the car, some Gwangju citizens shouted harshly.
Before the ceremony, Jang wrote on Facebook, "May 1980 in Gwangju is a page in the history that defended South Korea's liberal democracy. The true meaning of the 'May 18 spirit' is the noble sacrifice for freedom and human rights," adding, "But 46 years later, it is hard to hold back a sigh at the current state of South Korea's liberal democracy."
He said, "Lee Jae-myung (the president) and the Democratic Party have rammed through increasing the number of Supreme Court justices, a four-tier appeals system, dedicated panels, and the crime of distorting the law. All are anti-constitutional bad laws rarely found in a normal liberal democracy," and pointed out, "They have even gone so far as to topple our constitutional spirit that 'all citizens are equal before the law' to erase their own crimes altogether."
He stressed, "Lee Jae-myung (the president) and the Democratic Party always put the May 18 spirit out front. But for them, May 18 is not a value to be protected, but merely a tool for expanding power," adding, "Public anger has reached a tipping point. Our people will no longer tolerate Lee Jae-myung (the president) and the Democratic Party's destruction of liberal democracy."