"Chun Doo-hwan Did Not Commit Insurrection" Remark Sparks Backlash; Motions for Discipline and Expulsion Filed

[Anchor]

People Power Party Lawmaker Kim Tae-gyu is sparking public outrage after stating that what Chun Doo-hwan did was not an insurrection.

Reporter Park Chan-beom reports.

[Reporter]

This is a YouTube broadcast aired two days ago on September 30, featuring People Power Party Lawmaker Kim Tae-gyu, a former judge.

While discussing the "historical distortion controversy" surrounding the film 'The Assassin(s)', a question regarding insurrection was raised.

[Kim Tae-gyu / People Power Party Lawmaker (September 30, JTBC YouTube 'Genre is Yeouido') : (Was Yoon Suk Yeol an insurrection or not?) No, it wasn't. (Was Chun Doo-hwan an insurrection or not?) It was not an insurrection. (Even though there was a legal ruling, it's still not?) I believe it was not.]

However, in 1997, Chun Doo-hwan was sentenced to life imprisonment after the Supreme Court finalized his conviction on charges including murder for the purpose of insurrection in connection with the December 12 Military Coup and the bloody suppression of the May 18 Democratization Movement.

A judicial determination has already been made that Chun's seizure of power and related actions constituted an insurrection aimed at subverting the constitutional order.

Denouncing the remarks as a distortion of history, the Democratic Party submitted a resolution calling for Kim's expulsion and a motion for disciplinary action to the National Assembly.

[Park Gyun-taek / Democratic Party Lawmaker : He is someone who could repeat such absurd remarks at any time, like a ticking time bomb.]

Kim, however, took the floor during a five-minute speech in the National Assembly plenary session, refusing to back down from his stance and stating:

[Kim Tae-gyu / People Power Party Lawmaker : I believe there is ample room for the ruling against former President Park Geun-hye to be reevaluated through a retrial.]

Controversies involving historical distortions by lawmakers of the People Power Party have continued to arise.

In August, a seminar hosted at the National Assembly by Lawmaker Lee Jin-sook faced fierce backlash for disparaging the May 18 Democratization Movement, and in 2023, then-Lawmaker Thae Yong-ho caused controversy by claiming that the Jeju April 3 Incident was "instigated by North Korea."

(Video by Lee Seung-hwan and Shin Dong-hwan | Video Editing by Jang Hyeon-gi)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.