"Yoon, Apologize to Graduates Who Were Silenced... Restore R&D Budget"

At the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) graduation ceremony, about 10 alumni held a press conference demanding an apology in relation to an incident where a graduate protested President Yoon Suk-yeol and was dragged out by security personnel.

On the 17th, they held a press conference in front of the Presidential Office in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, stating, "We cannot contain our anger at President Yoon Suk-yeol's atrocity of ruthlessly silencing and expelling the graduate, the main figure of the event," and demanded an apology from President Yoon and the restoration of the reduced research and development (R&D) budget.

Choi Seong-rim, who served as KAIST vice president of the student council in 2006, criticized, "This incident is a clear case of excessive and arbitrary security," adding, "The cry of a young person worried about their future was nothing more than a bad act that disturbed the president's mood to them."

Dr. Hwang Jeong-a, a KAIST alumnus who was recruited by the Democratic Party ahead of the general election, said, "Many researchers have experienced their research projects being cut off or research funds being reduced," and added, "I want to let people know that the lone cry of the (expelled) student is by no means a solitary voice."

Kim Hye-min, a former KAIST student council president and a Democratic Party preliminary candidate, also criticized, saying, "This is something that should never happen in 21st century South Korea."

At the KAIST graduation ceremony the previous day, President Yoon attended and gave a congratulatory speech. During the speech, Shin Min-gi, a KAIST graduate and spokesperson for the Green Justice Party's Daejeon branch, shouted a message urging "Stop boasting and restore the R&D budget," and was dragged out by plainclothes security guards.

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