'Captain America' Appears at Human Rights Commission Amid Chaos... 'Yoon's Right to Defense Guaranteed' Passed

Chaos Intensifies as Fervent Supporters Gather Ahead of Human Rights Commission Meeting on the 10th
'Guarantee of President Yoon's Right to Defense in Impeachment Trial' Passed

On the 10th, ahead of the National Human Rights Commission's review of the agenda related to the 'Recommendation to Guarantee President Yoon Seok-yeol's Right to Defense,' fervent supporters of President Yoon flocked to the Human Rights Commission, where a man dressed as the Marvel movie character 'Captain America' was spotted, drawing attention. This man blocked the elevator on the 14th floor, where the meeting room is located, while holding a shield. He took this action to prevent the obstruction of the meeting by those opposing the agenda's submission.

Supporters of President Yoon riding the elevator at the National Human Rights Commission. YouTube Hongtamong

Before the meeting that day, Park Chung-kwon and Jo Bae-sook of the People Power Party and Ko Min-jung and Seo Mi-hwa of the Democratic Party visited the Human Rights Commission to express their respective positions for and against the agenda. However, supporters of President Yoon gathered at the Human Rights Commission from the morning, confronting staff and disrupting the meeting. Notably, one supporter appeared dressed as Captain America, attracting attention. This man shouted, "Let's block the elevators one by one and keep them from entering," and blocked citizens arriving on the 14th floor, saying, "Do you have audience certification? You cannot enter now. Even if we conduct ideological screening, you cannot come in." However, it was reported that this man and other supporters were dispersed by the police who arrived within about 15 minutes.

Ko Min-jung, a Democratic Party member and chairperson of the Human Rights Commission, pointed out, "At the front of the Human Rights Commission, atrocities similar to the Western District Court riot are being committed." She added, "They are openly engaging in unimaginable acts, telling journalists trying to enter the Human Rights Commission to say things like 'Lee Jae-myung XXX' and 'Xi Jinping XXX.' 'Ideological screening' is a clearly unconstitutional act that seriously threatens freedom of the press," she said.

Supporters of President Yoon are gathered in the lobby ahead of the '2025 2nd Jeonwin Committee Meeting' held on the 10th at the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) in Jung-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

In the afternoon, the Human Rights Commission held the 2nd plenary session and submitted the 'Recommendation on Measures to Overcome the National Crisis Caused by the Declaration of Martial Law.' After some amendments, it passed with 6 votes in favor and 4 against out of 11 members present. This agenda, proposed last month by standing commissioner Kim Yong-won, who caused controversy with remarks such as "We must smash the Constitutional Court," recommends guaranteeing President Yoon's right to defense in the impeachment trial, withdrawing the impeachment motion against Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, and restoring the acting presidential authority. It sparked strong opposition from civic groups and the opposition parties.

After attending the session, Representative Ko said, "Today is the day the Human Rights Commission died. Even matters decided by the courts are being dictated by the Human Rights Commission in a form of regent politics," adding, "From this moment on, I believe the Human Rights Commission no longer exists in the Republic of Korea."