[The Editors' Verdict] The Answer Lies in Yoo Seung-min's Speech from 10 Years Ago

"Protecting the community is the duty of a sound conservative party."

The speech by Yoo Seung-min, then floor leader of the ruling Saenuri Party (predecessor of the People Power Party) on April 8, 2015, is etched in political history. If Sohn Hak-kyu's "Life with Evenings" is regarded as the epitome of presidential campaign slogans, Yoo Seung-min's speech is the highlight of parliamentary addresses. Even opposition parties responded with "we applaud" in praise. What content did it contain to receive such acclaim even from rival parties?

Yoo Seung-min presented philosophies on various agendas including community, growth and welfare, solutions to poverty, political dignity, market economy and household debt, and national security.

"The Saenuri Party will become a party that creates a warm community where growth and welfare go hand in hand, growing by sharing."

Although the opposition positively evaluated Yoo Seung-min's speech, they were inwardly tense because of the conservatives' flexibility that even embraced progressive agendas. Yoo Seung-min's speech was a signal flare in the policy competition over which political force is best suited to govern the country. Had the agenda experiment, which embraced not only centrists but some progressives, successfully landed, the political landscape of Korea might have fundamentally changed.

Especially notable is the part emphasizing the conservative party's duty related to the community. The reason to revisit Yoo Seung-min's speech from 10 years ago now is that it contains solutions to the political situation following the December 3 emergency martial law incident.

Former People Power Party lawmaker Yoo Seung-min is giving a lecture on the theme "What Kind of World Will We Create?" at an invited lecture hosted by the Global Social Contribution Institute Leadership Center on the afternoon of November 9, 2023, at Baekyang Hall, Yonsei University, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul.

South Korea is facing an unprecedented situation where the sitting president is suspected as the ringleader of a rebellion. "Break down the door by shooting if necessary and enter (the National Assembly) to drag them out." The indictment by the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office against former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun details what the president ordered the Capital Defense Command via phone at the time. He ordered the Special Warfare Command to "break the door with an axe," and this was conveyed to the field commander with the explanation "by the president's order."

The 83-page indictment covers the entire process from preparing for martial law to its execution. Reading through the indictment is suffocating beyond surprise. Mobilizing the military to block the vote to lift martial law is an act above the law, violating both the Constitution of the Republic of Korea and the Martial Law Act. The Constitutional Court will decide on dismissal after examining whether the president has the will to abide by the law, especially the qualification to uphold the Constitution.

The reality we face now relates to the values of the republic. Citizens who stayed awake on the night of December 3 last year are questioning the conservative party's duty regarding the community. How will the scene appear where 44 People Power Party lawmakers rushed to the Hannam-dong presidential residence to block the execution of the arrest warrant issued by the court against the president? Acting recklessly by plunging into the turmoil of rebellion carries responsibility. It is time to reflect on whether politicians are gambling dangerously for their own survival rather than considering the party's future.

In the flood of extreme language, South Korea is in a precarious situation. Should we exacerbate the current situation, which is being evaluated as a "psychological rebellion," rather than resolve it? Politics that only weigh immediate gains and losses cannot overcome this crisis. Relying on the so-called asphalt far-right to temporarily avoid the crisis will leave an unbearable debt.

If the expectation that the party can be entrusted with the country is shaken, even the political status built so far can be threatened. Can a ruling party dream be nurtured while bearing the scarlet letter of rebellion?