"Don't Worry. Five Years Will Pass Quickly"… Lee Hae-chan Emphasizes 'Faith in History'

Memoir Publication Celebration Held at the National Assembly
Exactly 50 Years Ago on October 17, Armed Soldiers Silenced and Changed Lives
"Policy Flexibility, Depth of Thought, and Communication Are Important"
"The People Who Turned Eggs Without Breaking Them and Pushed Them into the Sea"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] "After losing in this presidential election, my mother sighed and didn’t play with me much, so a 10-year-old child said to his mother, ‘Mom, don’t worry. Five years will pass quickly.’ The fact that a 10-year-old thinks like that, I also had the same thought."

Former Democratic Party leader Lee Hae-chan said at a book launch event held at the National Assembly Museum on the 17th, "In the 1980s, we struggled to end the Yushin regime, and then the Chun Doo-hwan regime came in, mercilessly killing and ruling with guns and knives. We felt despair, but since we defeated Park Chung-hee, we thought we could also overcome Chun Doo-hwan’s seven years, and in reality, it only lasted seven years," adding, "I want to once again emphasize the importance of having faith in history."

Lee also said, "During the remaining time ahead, I will strive to live diligently as a respectable citizen," and added, "The basic order of liberal democracy is our greatest lifeline."

Standing at the podium as the author, he reflected on his life. The first story he shared was about this very day 50 years ago. He said it was the day his life changed. "Representative Lee Jae-myung also mentioned this, but today is October 17th, the day my life changed," he said, "It has already been 50 years since that day."

He recalled, "In the evening, I was gathering with friends to have a drink, but instead of my friends, I witnessed soldiers with guns in a military truck entering the school. It has been exactly 50 years since I started student activism and underground movements," and reflected, "Our constitution’s fundamental spirit is to uphold the liberal democratic basic order, which I believed was the unchallengeable national system of our country, but the Yushin regime destroyed that entire system." Lee added, "From then until the June Democratic Uprising in 1987, many people shed tears and sweat, and countless people died in Gwangju."

He also expressed his thoughts on his political career. "While working in the party, I mainly focused on policy areas, and I often thought that if we had supplemented certain policies more or avoided others, or proceeded more slowly, things might have turned out better. At the time, I thought this approach would work, but later I realized that situations changed and sometimes led to unintended results," he said. "Looking back, I feel that while the basics of policy should be maintained, it is crucial to respond flexibly according to circumstances," he added. He emphasized, "The flexibility of policy, depth of thinking, and communication process are extremely important, especially when it concerns issues directly related to the lives of many people in our country."

Lee also expressed faith in history and the people. Introducing Korea’s democratization history, he said, "Our people have never taken up guns or knives. Yet, we broke rocks not with bare hands but by pushing them into the sea with eggs. Because of this, our nation is highly respected wherever we go in the world."

He said, "Looking at how things are going these days and the prospects ahead, I have many worries, but I have faith," adding, "We have experience overcoming even more difficult times wisely and fiercely."

The memoir book launch event was attended by many senior and current Democratic Party politicians, including Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung, former First Lady Kwon Yang-sook, former National Assembly Speakers Kim Won-ki and Moon Hee-sang, and former Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum.

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