‘5·18’ Reexamined in Light of Nobel Literature Prize Win

Jeon Jin-sook Proposes '5·18 Merit Act Amendment'
"All Victims Deserve Proper Respect"

Jeon Jin-sook Assembly Member

Han Kang, the author of "The Boy Who Came," which is based on the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement, became the first Korean to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, and a bill to expand the scope of May 18 Democratic Merit Recipients is being promoted.

On the 15th, Jeon Jin-sook, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea representing Gwangju Buk-gu Eul, announced that she had introduced the "May 18 Democratic Merit Recipients' Treatment and Organization Establishment Act Amendment Bill" as the main proposer. This bill aims to allow those recognized as related persons under the Act on Compensation for Persons Related to the May 18 Democratization Movement to be registered and honored as May 18 Democratic Merit Recipients.

The "May 18 Compensation Act," revised in 2021, added related persons such as victims of sexual violence, those who were wanted, detained, or imprisoned, and those who received dismissal, academic disciplinary action, or had their cases dismissed or convicted. However, the current "May 18 Merit Recipients Act" still limits its application to deceased persons, missing persons, injured persons, and other victims, so newly added groups like sexual violence victims are not registered as democratic merit recipients.

Rep. Jeon stated, "Through this amendment, newly recognized related persons such as sexual violence victims will be able to register as democratic merit recipients and receive proper treatment by establishing a legal basis." She added, "If the amendment passes, it is expected that the victims related to May 18 will receive corresponding honors."

Rep. Jeon also said, "Han Kang's Nobel Prize in Literature was an important opportunity to inform the world of the historical value of the May 18 Democratization Movement. Preserving the historical significance of May 18 and properly honoring related persons is the duty of the state." She added, "We will continue to make all necessary legal and institutional efforts to realize this."