"Not All Support Martial Law...Anti-China Sentiment Is a Bigger Factor" [Who Are the Far-Right Youth?]

② How Conservative Groups Define Far-Right Youth
"Anti-China Sentiment and Rightward Shift Deepened After COVID-19"

Editor's NoteIn 2025, there was a noticeable increase in the number of young people participating in pro-martial law rallies that shook the South Korean political scene. While politicians have labeled these youths as "far-right youth," some point out that this is excessive stigmatization. How did these young people end up on the streets and come to be classified as far-right? This article examines how, in 2026, our society might find ways to embrace far-right youth.

The scene of a pro-martial law rally led by the conservative university student group Jayu University around Dongdaemun on December 6, 2025. Photo by Joo-Hyung Lim

The political establishment tends to classify most young participants in pro-martial law rallies as "far-right youth." However, even within conservative university student groups, martial law is a highly divisive issue. A significant number of university students participating in these rallies actually oppose martial law, and there are even more young people who join the rallies due to anti-China sentiment.

Truth Forum CEO: "Martial Law and Election Fraud Theories Are Controversial Even Within the Organization"

Eungoo Kim, CEO of Truth Forum

On December 30, Eungoo Kim, CEO of Truth Forum, one of the conservative university student groups, stated, "The so-called 'far-right youth' spectrum is broad. Not all far-right youth advocate for the legalization of martial law. Even within conservative university student groups, there is a fierce debate over martial law, and opinions are far from unified." Founded in 2015, Truth Forum is the largest conservative university student group in South Korea, with branches at approximately 140 universities nationwide.

Kim explained, "Even within the organization, there are differing perspectives and internal discord regarding the martial law situation and election fraud theories. As Truth Forum took a more active stance on election fraud, members who were uncomfortable with these claims left the group." He added, "The prevailing opinion within the organization is not to believe in election fraud theories as fact, but rather that since many people have suspicions about election fraud, the state must resolve these doubts and improve the electoral system so that such suspicions cannot arise in the first place."

The election fraud theory was first raised in 2020 by Kyungwook Min, then a member of the United Future Party, who claimed that the 21st general election was unfair due to Chinese interference and should be invalidated. The lawsuit to nullify the election, filed by Min, was dismissed by the Supreme Court in 2022, but some conservative groups continue to assert that the election fraud theory is true.

Kim further argued, "In fact, most of the young people participating in the pro-martial law rallies are motivated by anti-China sentiment, regardless of martial law or election fraud theories. Many young people are keenly aware of the Chinese Communist Party's infiltration. Whether martial law was justified will be judged by history, but there is broad consensus that the immediate threats posed by China and North Korea must be countered."

"Anti-China Sentiment Expanded After COVID-19... A Cause of Youth Rightward Shift"

Taeyoung Kang, CEO of Underscore

Anti-China sentiment is deeply rooted among the younger generation. According to a survey conducted by Korea Research from October 13 to 15, 2025, targeting 1,000 adults aged 18 to 79, the 2030 youth generation recorded the lowest favorability scores toward China among all age groups. Those in their 30s scored 20.9 out of 100, the lowest, followed by those aged 18-29 at 22, those in their 40s at 26.9, those in their 50s at 33.9, and those in their 60s and 70s at 36.9. The survey has a margin of error of ±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level.

Kang Taeyoung, CEO of the data analysis firm Underscore, who confirmed the strong anti-China sentiment among youth through recent polls, said, "Since the COVID-19 pandemic, anti-China sentiment has rapidly spread through social networking services (SNS)," and assessed that this has influenced the rightward shift among young people. He explained, "According to various opinion polls, the proportion of far-right voters who strongly support martial law is only about 5% at most."

Kang added, "When we use artificial intelligence (AI) to extract racially discriminatory comments from portal sites and analyze which countries are being targeted, China is the most frequent target. In Japan, so-called anti-Korean websites surged as the Korean economy began to grow, and similarly, in South Korea, anti-China sentiment has expanded since China's economic development accelerated."

He argued that the combination of anti-China sentiment and backlash against the now-established progressive forces has strengthened the rightward shift among young people. Kang analyzed, "Fifteen years ago, many young people joined the mad cow disease protests out of opposition to the then-conservative government, but now, with the progressive government becoming the establishment, the backlash has shifted in the opposite direction. Among young people who grew up in Gangnam, there is a stronger tendency to support the conservative bloc out of opposition to the current administration."

However, he pointed out that it is difficult to regard all those exhibiting a rightward shift based on anti-China sentiment as far-right. Kang said, "To seriously discuss youth far-rightism in South Korea, we would have to see a situation where a party with genuinely far-right policies becomes the leading party. In that sense, it is valid to say that Europe is experiencing a far-right shift, but such a phenomenon has not occurred in South Korea yet. While it is fair to say that young people have shifted to the right, we should be cautious about using the term 'far-rightism.'"