Six out of Ten Adults Say "May Spirit Should Be Included in the Preamble of the Constitution"

May 18 Memorial Foundation Survey
Most Urgent Issue Related to May 18: "Truth-Finding" Ranks First

Six out of ten adults in South Korea agree that the "May Spirit" should be included in the preamble of the Constitution.

The scene during the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement. May 18 Memorial Foundation

On May 13, the May 18 Memorial Foundation announced the results of a survey conducted by a professional polling agency, which asked 1,000 adults nationwide about their awareness of the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement this year. According to the survey, 67.4% of respondents said it is "necessary" to include the May 18 Democratization Movement in the preamble of the Constitution. Specifically, 47.4% answered "very necessary," while 20% responded "somewhat necessary."

When asked about the most urgent issue related to May 18 that needs to be clarified, the most common answer was "concealment, distortion, and fabrication of the May 18 Democratization Movement," at 33.9%. This was followed by "the circumstances and responsibility for the martial law troops' opening fire" at 24.2%, "suspicions of secret burials of victims" at 15.1%, "deaths and injuries of soldiers and police" at 10.2%, and "the armory attack incident" at 5.8%.

As for the tasks the new government should pursue regarding May 18 in the future, 32.8% cited "truth-finding," 20% cited "prevention of distortion and disparagement," 19.8% cited "reflecting the May 18 Spirit in the preamble of the Constitution," and 19.6% cited "improving treatment and recognition of those honored for their contribution to democracy."

Regarding awareness of May 18, 95.3% of respondents said they were aware of it, an increase of 4.7 percentage points from last year (90.6%).

In addition, when asked whether the slush funds illicitly accumulated by the new military regime, including Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo, should be recovered, 73% answered that it is "very necessary" or "necessary."

Furthermore, regarding the projects the foundation should focus on this year, "truth-finding and raising awareness of the truth" was the top priority at 61.3%. "Truth-finding and raising awareness of the truth" has been identified as the most important project for the past four years, from 2022 to this year.