[Reporter’s Notebook] Thicker Fog Envelops Sejong Government Complex: Who Is to Blame?

Since the 3rd, the atmosphere in Sejong Special Self-Governing City has changed 180 degrees. Although the emergency martial law declared by President Yoon Seok-yeol that night was lifted after six hours, statements expressing confusion and concern continued throughout the Government Complex Sejong.

In response to a reporter's question asking if the lifting of the emergency martial law brought some relief, a government ministry official said, "The (worrisome) situation is not over," adding, "I remember during the final days of the Park Geun-hye administration, the impeachment government couldn't do anything." This inevitably recalls the trauma of having to endure work paralysis during the past impeachment phase.

After the emergency martial law incident, government ministries have been working hard to stabilize the situation by holding consecutive senior-level meetings while managing each ministry's pending issues. However, today, with Han Dong-hoon, the leader of the People Power Party, changing his stance, the impeachment phase has intensified, causing all policy initiatives to lose momentum. The uncertainty surrounding the approval of next year's budget has also increased. Amid domestic and international uncertainties hampering our economy, the added presidential risk has dealt a blow to the nation's credibility.

To make matters worse, all members of the State Council have expressed their intention to resign to take responsibility for the martial law incident, raising concerns about ministerial vacancies. In fact, some ministers were unable to carry out scheduled tasks due to their resignation announcements. Since it is highly likely that the aftermath of the incident will not end soon, avoiding additional uncertainties is difficult. Sejong City, which embraces the Geum River and has a wide water surface area prone to fog, now finds itself shrouded in even thicker fog.

President Yoon said, "I declared emergency martial law with a resolute will to save the nation against anti-state forces trying to paralyze the essential functions of the state and collapse the constitutional order of liberal democracy." He also criticized the opposition party for cutting essential budgets for next year, stating, "The budget outrage is mocking the national finances of the Republic of Korea." He provided grounds for his claim that "the paralysis of state affairs is increasing the sighs of the people."

Reflecting on this reason clearly shows how wrong the declaration of martial law was. Looking at the results caused by this incident, the person who paralyzed the essential functions of the state (government) and halted the budget discussions is none other than the president himself. The person who made the entire nation anxious overnight by recalling the nightmare of past military regimes on the night martial law was declared is also the president.

The day before, President Yoon quickly accepted the resignation of Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun, who proposed the emergency martial law. If this was considered a way to resolve the situation, it was a wrong move. This is a natural step following the unconstitutional declaration of martial law and cannot be seen as an active resolution. The person responsible for the current situation is the president. Instead of staying out of sight ahead of the parliamentary impeachment vote, he should apologize to the people and take appropriate responsibility.