'We Were Different'... The Night of Martial Law to Be Recorded as a Victory for Democracy

Democracy That Has Not Regressed from Historical Reaction
Military Units' Entry into Parliament Did Not Lead to Bloodshed
Made Possible by Mature Democracy and the Power of Citizens

Martial law was declared and lifted within six hours. Although soldiers stormed the parliament, causing a national crisis that halted the constitutional order, no one died. Looking back, it was a miraculous series of events. How was this possible?

The main stage on the night of the 3rd, when martial law was declared, was the National Assembly. The martial law troops attempted to enter to suppress the National Assembly, which constitutionally holds the sole authority to lift martial law. The force numbered about 280, but they were the elite units of our military. Additionally, police forces were heavily deployed in the capital, Seoul, to blockade the National Assembly, yet lawmakers were still able to exercise their voting rights inside the main building of the assembly hall.

On the 4th, about 20 martial law troops attempted to break the glass windows and enter the main building of the National Assembly. Photo by Kim Hyun-min

We have a painful history of martial law in the past. Whenever the military took the forefront and suspended the constitutional order, someone inevitably shed blood. However, this time, although the military, citizens, and politicians clashed, it did not lead to a tragedy.

What was different this time was largely due to the influence of a democracy that has deepened and matured as our society has developed.

The troops who entered the National Assembly as martial law forces were surprisingly passive in clashes with citizens or politicians. Known as the elite decapitation unit, they were fully armed, yet showed extreme restraint during physical confrontations. Even if there were directives to avoid bloodshed, carrying them out would have been impossible without the conscious efforts of the unit members.

President Yoon Suk-yeol declared martial law, and on the 4th, citizens gathered in front of the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, urging the lifting of martial law. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, said, "Many soldiers refused to comply with the attempt to declare martial law that sought to become an absolute monarch controlling legislative and judicial powers beyond the president's authority," and added, "Even commanders and soldiers who obeyed orders tried to avoid killing citizens, minimized destruction, refrained from beating people with rifle butts or shooting, and performed their duties minimally to reduce harm to citizens." He continued, "The coup was thwarted by the fierce efforts of the staff and aides who risked their lives, and the citizens who woke up in the middle of the night and rushed to the National Assembly," and said, "If an overwhelming majority of military personnel had obeyed the president's coup order, if the commanders and soldiers deployed at the coup site had seized the National Assembly and arrested key figures even a little faster, if they had taken control of the assembly and made arrests before the voting procedures, if lawmakers had been preoccupied with hiding for their safety, if the police had given up on entering the assembly because it was blocked, removing even one of these coincidental factors would have made it impossible to prevent a historic regression."

The police were also different. During the martial law situation, the police vacillated between completely blocking and partially allowing lawmakers' access. It is known that the police had their own reasons for this. During a briefing by the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee on the 5th, Police Commissioner General Jo Ji-ho responded to questions from Shin Jeong-hoon, chairman of the committee (Democratic Party), that he had received orders from the martial law commander to control the National Assembly but answered that there was "no legal basis." When asked again based on the proclamation, he replied, "I will take appropriate measures after reviewing the proclamation." Even in the face of the martial law commander's severe orders, there remained some rationality in demanding legal grounds.

Above all, what changed the course of history was the power of the citizens.

On the 4th, citizens in front of the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, cheered after hearing the news of President Yoon Seok-yeol's lifting of the emergency martial law. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung

That night, citizens spent a sleepless night preventing a regression of history. About 4,000 citizens gathered near the National Assembly and blocked the military units attempting to enter. If the citizens had not blocked the soldiers' entry, the outcome of that night would have been different. Park Ju-min, a Democratic Party lawmaker, said, "Many citizens came to the National Assembly during martial law and physically blocked the police and military forces despite the very dangerous situation," adding, "That is why we were able to pass the resolution demanding the lifting of martial law."

Besides the remarkable actions of the military, police, and citizens, the mobile phones each citizen carried also changed the situation. During the 155 minutes from the declaration of martial law to its lifting resolution in the National Assembly, citizens were connected as one through social media. Unlike past martial law situations where martial law troops occupied broadcasting stations and controlled the media, during this time, a wide range of citizens used social media to understand, share, and shape public opinion about the situation.

The voices of the citizens gathered in this way became the power to prevent a regression of history.

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