[Inside Chodong] Where Does Great Power Come From?

Power Given to Protect Lives and Freedom of the People
Abused to Overcome Crisis for President and Close Associates
Must Apologize for Constitutional Disruption and Step Down

"Tomorrow's stock market opening is uncertain.", "Overnight futures and options are plummeting.", "Please check the crypto situation quickly."

On the night of the 3rd, right after President Yoon Seok-yeol declared martial law, the editorial office of this newspaper was in a state of urgency. The won-dollar exchange rate soared to its highest level in over two years, and stock prices and virtual asset prices plunged. Securities and capital market reporters anxiously monitored various indices, exchange rates, foreign investors, and market trends in unison with authorities trying to minimize the financial market shock.

A notice from the editorial office stated that starting tomorrow, articles might be subject to censorship under the control of the Martial Law Command. It also included a somewhat solemn message urging journalists to fulfill their mission regardless of what happens. The Martial Law Command's proclamation stated that "fake news, public opinion manipulation, and false agitation are prohibited" and "all media and publications are subject to the control of the Martial Law Command." It also said that violators of the proclamation could be arrested, detained, and searched without a warrant under Article 9 of the Martial Law Act of the Republic of Korea (Special Measures by the Martial Law Commander), and punished under Article 14 of the Martial Law Act.

That night, while the National Assembly was functioning normally according to the Constitution and laws, a situation of national disorder occurred when martial law troops broke the glass windows and stormed into the National Assembly, the bastion of democracy. Faced with the president's unconstitutional and autocratic declaration of martial law, most journalists from various media outlets risked personal detention and punishment to flood the public with critical articles.

President Yoon Suk-yeol declared martial law on the evening of the 3rd, and on the night of the 4th, martial law troops are entering the main building of the National Assembly in Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

This is not to boast but to talk about the source of power. Reporters usually meet key figures in government, corporations, and society whom the public rarely encounters, and listen and ask questions on behalf of the people. Their role is to inform who among those holding power and capital are lying and who are harming the community, with the eyes of a watchdog.

This powerful force of the press, which can report, ask, and criticize, contains the precious value gathered from each and every citizen. Therefore, even when the crisis of personal detention arises, as it did on the night martial law was declared, the precious rights gathered from the people?that is, the people's right to know and, through it, the protection of individual human rights, private property, and social values?must be fulfilled. This power is not mine; it is thoroughly directed beyond the individual toward others.

In the same context, what is the source of power behind the president declaring martial law in the middle of the night and mobilizing military forces to storm the National Assembly? It also came from the people. All the powers with various names such as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, the right to declare martial law, and the veto power over legislation are authorities temporarily delegated to the president as the people's representative and guardian of the Constitution. Considering how President Yoon used that enormous power given to protect the people's lives, freedom, and safety is truly disheartening.

President Yoon abused power, which will forever remain a disgrace in constitutional history, to overcome the legal and political crises faced by himself and his close associates. He mistook a personal emergency, with plummeting approval ratings and tightening calls for impeachment, for a national emergency. Using the precious power gathered from the people, President Yoon harmed the people's freedom, safety, and property and damaged the democratic values protected through bloodshed. The path for a president who truly cares for the people as a final conscience is to apologize immediately and resign.