President Moon, First Sitting President to Visit 'Namyeong-dong Anti-Communist Investigation Office'... "Democracy Will Never Regress" (Update)

33rd Anniversary of the June 10 Democratic Uprising Commemoration Ceremony... President Moon Attends for the Second Time During His Term

President Moon Jae-in delivers a commemorative speech at the June 10 Democratic Uprising memorial ceremony held at the Democracy and Human Rights Memorial Hall in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, on the morning of the 10th. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Son Sun-hee] On the 10th, President Moon Jae-in visited the former Security Headquarters, notoriously known as the so-called 'Namyeong-dong Anti-Communist Investigation Office,' for the first time as a sitting president. It was the place where the late Park Jong-cheol, who was 22 years old at the time, died from water torture 33 years ago.

At 10 a.m. that day, President Moon attended the '33rd Anniversary of the June 10 Democratic Uprising Commemoration Ceremony' held at the planned site of the Democracy and Human Rights Memorial in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, and said, "Democrats who endured death-like pain and humiliating torture transformed the space of 'dictatorship and violence' into a space of 'democratic struggle.'" He added, "I am proud of our people and democratic figures who overcame harsh times and ultimately turned a dark space into one of hope and future."

President Moon emphasized, "We demonstrated democracy based on solidarity and cooperation in overcoming the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19)," adding, "The democracy we built made the Republic of Korea a model country in COVID-19 prevention."

He evaluated, "Our democracy has grown bigger and stronger, and it has now matured without envy from others," but also said, "We must always reflect on whether all citizens are enjoying democracy in their daily lives."

He continued, "Democracy works properly when even minorities are respected and when we constantly look back at marginalized places," emphasizing, "A sustainable and more equal economy is practical democracy that we must achieve beyond institutional democracy." He also added, "Peace is a difficult and challenging path, but all the more reason we must achieve peace through democracy," and "Only peace achieved in this way will bring lasting prosperity to us."

President Moon Jae-in awards the Order of Civil Merit, Moran Medal, to Bae Eun-sim, the mother of the late martyr Lee Han-yeol, at the June 10 Democratic Uprising Commemoration Ceremony held at the Democracy and Human Rights Memorial Hall in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, on the morning of the 10th.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

At the ceremony that day, President Moon personally awarded government medals to contributors to the development of democracy for the first time in history. Although individual medals had been awarded to past democracy activists, this was the first time medals were awarded at a commemoration ceremony following recommendations and reviews by civic groups and related organizations.

President Moon called out the names of the 12 medal recipients one by one, saying, "They are truly the embodiment of democracy in the Republic of Korea, and they were the shield for the people during the harsh dictatorship era," and added, "I proudly remember walking alongside these individuals in the streets and squares." President Moon was active as a human rights lawyer in Busan during the democratic uprising.

The recipients of the Order of Civil Merit, Moran Medal, included the late Pastor Park Hyung-kyu, who led human rights movements and anti-dictatorship democratization efforts; the late lawyer Cho Young-rae, founder of the Lawyers for a Democratic Society (Minbyun); as well as the late Lee So-sun, mother of the labor activist Jeon Tae-il; the late Park Jeong-gi, father of Park Jong-cheol; and Bae Eun-sim, mother of Lee Han-yeol. These medals were not awarded on behalf of the deceased democratic activists but recognized the contributions of those who lost their children and directly engaged in the democratization movement.

President Moon said, "Today's medals are awarded by the government, but they represent the proud history of democracy and the grateful hearts of the people," and expressed, "I sincerely offer my respect and gratitude." He added, "We will continue to honor independence, national defense, and democracy contributors with full respect."

President Moon stated, "The June 10 Democratic Uprising was not a sudden miracle but a victorious history created by the long-standing aspirations of the people to regain popular sovereignty, starting from the March 1 Independence Movement," and said, "The greatest achievement of our people is having the experience and collective memory of advancing history through the power of the people." He concluded his commemorative speech by saying, "Therefore, our democracy can never regress," and "Now, we must move toward more, bigger, and more diverse democracy. We can do it well."

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