Rep. Lee Hyung-seok Pushes for Party Adoption of the '5·18 History Distortion Punishment Act'

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] Rep. Lee Hyung-seok (Gwangju Buk-gu Eul, Democratic Party) requested on the 3rd at the Democratic Party's 251st Supreme Council meeting to adopt the amendment to the "Special Act on the May 18 Democratic Movement, etc." (May 18 Historical Distortion Punishment Act) as the party's official stance.

It was decided to start the internal party procedures based on the premise of adopting it as the party's official stance.

Rep. Lee stated, "The May 18 Democratic Movement is a representative democratization movement that contributed to the development of democracy in the Republic of Korea and a sad history of our modern and contemporary history."

He continued, "Although the special law was enacted during the Kim Young-sam administration in 1995 and a historical evaluation of May 18 was made, some groups still slander and disparage the May 18 Democratic Movement, and distort and fabricate historical facts," emphasizing, "The sorrow is leading to further pain and hindering the integration of our society."

The amendment to the "Special Act on the May 18 Democratic Movement, etc." (May 18 Historical Distortion Punishment Act), which Rep. Lee plans to introduce as the main proposer, includes ▲ provisions defining the historical and legal definition of the May 18 Democratic Movement ▲ establishment of punishment regulations for denial, slander, distortion, and fabrication such as spreading false information (imprisonment of up to 7 years or a fine of up to 70 million won) ▲ suspension of the statute of limitations for crimes against humanity.

Rep. Lee said, "During the bill review process, through prior discussions with Supreme Council member Seol Hoon (May 18 Democratic Movement merit recipient), Rep. Lee Gae-ho, Rep. Song Gap-seok (Chairman of the Democratic Party Gwangju Metropolitan City Party), as well as lawmakers from the Gwangju and Jeonnam regions, academia, and civic groups, we prepared a total of eight May 18-related bills including the amendment to the 'Special Act on the May 18 Democratic Movement, etc.'” and added, “Among these, we requested the Supreme Council to adopt some of the bills as the party's official stance and promote them.”

He added, "The request to promote the amendment to the 'Special Act on the May 18 Democratic Movement, etc.' as the party's official stance is the beginning of efforts to set the May 18 history straight," and said, "After completing the final review of the May 18-related amendments through a public hearing this month, we will officially proceed with the party's official stance adoption process."

Furthermore, he added, "We will also complete discussions on the May 18 Truth Investigation Act as soon as possible and proceed with the party's official stance adoption process."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.