President Moon Jae-in (fifth from the left), National Assembly Speaker Chung Sye-kyun, Acting Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court Kim Yi-su, and others attended the '37th Anniversary of the May 18 Democratic Uprising Commemoration Ceremony' held on the morning of the 18th at the National May 18 Democratic Cemetery in Buk-gu, Gwangju, and sang the "March for the Beloved." Jeong Woo-taek, Acting Leader of the Liberty Korea Party (second from the right), kept his mouth closed. (Photo by Yonhap News)
[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] The Yoon Seok-yeol administration will perform the "March for the Beloved" in a "joint singing" format at the May 18 Democratic Movement commemoration ceremony. This is considered the first case under a conservative government, signaling a desire to end conflicts and promote unity.
According to the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs on the 16th, the "March for the Beloved" will be sung in a joint singing format at the 42nd anniversary May 18 Democratic Movement commemoration ceremony held at the Gwangju May 18 Democratic Cemetery on the 18th. The ceremony program also lists it as "March for the Beloved Joint Singing," the ministry said.
A ministry official stated, "As with last year, the ceremony program includes the joint singing of the March for the Beloved," adding, "The joint singing in the program means that all attendees sing together."
It was also reported that President Yoon, attending the event, expressed his intention to sing the "March for the Beloved" together with the attendees during the final part of the ceremony.
The issue of whether the "March for the Beloved" is performed as a "joint singing" caused controversy and conflict every year before and after the ceremony during the Park Geun-hye and Lee Myung-bak administrations. Since 2004, the year after May 18 became a legal commemoration day, the song has been officially performed as a joint singing every year, with all attendees, including former President Roh Moo-hyun, standing and singing along.
However, in 2009, the third year of the Lee Myung-bak administration, the "March for the Beloved" was excluded from the official program, and in 2010, this led to protests from May 18 organizations and bereaved families, resulting in the 30th anniversary ceremony being split into two and disrupted.
During the Park Geun-hye administration, the song was performed by a choir throughout the ceremony, but with the change to the Moon Jae-in administration, the "March for the Beloved" was again sung as a joint singing.
President Yoon is likely to travel to Gwangju on a special KTX train with members of the People Power Party. It is also known that ministers from various departments and senior secretaries from the presidential office will be on board this train.
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