Speaker Woo Wonsik: "Ensuring No More Dreams of Rebellion... Completing the May 18 Amendment"

Pushing to Include the Spirit of May 18 and the Busan-Masan Uprising in the Preamble of the Constitution
Publicly Questions Candidate Lee Junghyun: "Explain the Party-Line Opposition"
Confident in Passage Despite Lawmakers Resigning for Local Elections

National Assembly Speaker Woo Wonsik visited Gwangju and made clear his intention to push for a constitutional amendment to include the spirit of the May 18 Democratic Movement in the preamble of the Constitution and to specify balanced national development. Speaker Woo criticized party-line politics within the political sphere and appealed for lawmakers to cast free votes according to their conscience.

On the morning of the 21st, Speaker Woo paid tribute at the National May 18 Democratic Cemetery in Buk-gu, Gwangju, and stated, "This constitutional amendment, being pursued for the first time in 39 years, will be a 'door-opening amendment' that revisits the history of democracy and leads Korea into the future."

Upon arriving at the National May 18 Democratic Cemetery, Speaker Woo laid flowers and burned incense in honor of the May spirits, then visited the graves of martyrs Yoon Sangwon and Park Kisoon. After listening to explanations about the martyrs, he knelt and personally cleaned the tombstone with his hands for about two minutes, expressing his deep respect and remembrance.

Speaker Woo Wonsik is speaking after paying respects at the National May 18 Democratic Cemetery in Unjeong-dong, Buk-gu, Gwangju on the 21st. Photo by Min Hyunki

After completing the tribute, Speaker Woo held a press conference in front of the Gate of Democracy to clarify the purpose of his visit. He said, "The reason for coming to Gwangju is to directly explain to the citizens the core contents of the constitutional amendment, which the National Assembly is pursuing for the first time in 39 years, and to seek their support. The spirit of May 18 teaches us the great historical lesson that 'no power can overcome the people.' We must engrave this in the preamble of the Constitution and build a constitutional system that will forever prevent any future attempts at rebellion in this land," he emphasized.

The constitutional amendment proposed by Speaker Woo is a "partial amendment" rather than a complete overhaul. Instead of tackling contentious issues such as restructuring the power structure or strengthening basic rights, which have significant disagreements between ruling and opposition parties, the amendment focuses on the minimum content: including the spirit of May 18 and the Busan-Masan Democratic Uprising in the preamble of the Constitution, and specifying balanced national development as a national obligation—issues that all political forces have previously agreed upon.

Speaker Woo also mentioned his communication with President Lee Jaemyung regarding this matter. He explained, "We have discussed the necessity of constitutional amendment several times, and agreed that it is more realistic to pursue a phased and partial amendment at a level where consensus is possible, rather than a complete revision." He also cited the inability of the current Constitution to adequately reflect changed realities such as the AI era, the climate crisis, and severe regional imbalance as urgent reasons for the amendment.

Speaker Woo strongly criticized party-line politics in the political community, which has been pointed out as the biggest obstacle to constitutional amendment. In particular, addressing the People Power Party, he said, "It is completely unacceptable for political forces to now block, based on party lines, matters they once promised here in Gwangju. Now is not the time for promises, but for action. The leadership of the People Power Party must ensure that lawmakers can vote according to their own conscience and free will, not party lines," he urged.

Woon-sik Woo, Speaker of the National Assembly, is paying respects on the 21st at the National May 18 Democratic Cemetery in Unjeong-dong, Buk-gu, Gwangju, while cleaning the tombstone of martyr Sangwon Yoon. Photo by Min Hyunki

Speaker Woo continued by publicly questioning Lee Junghyun, the People Power Party's candidate for the special mayor of the integrated Jeonnam-Gwangju region. He said, "If you wish to earn the trust of Gwangju, you must have an attitude that matches such intent. It is only right to first explain to the citizens of Gwangju whether the party-line opposition to the amendment is truly justified," he pointed out.

A concrete timetable for handling the amendment was also presented. Speaker Woo said, "We plan to push for a National Assembly vote between May 4 and May 10," adding, "Since approval by at least two-thirds of the registered lawmakers is required, it is more important than anything that all lawmakers participate in a free vote."

Regarding concerns that securing the required quorum may become difficult as some lawmakers recently resigned to run in local elections, Speaker Woo showed his determination to overcome the issue. He stated, "If the number of registered lawmakers decreases due to resignations, the two-thirds threshold for passage will also decrease accordingly. As long as each lawmaker's free will is guaranteed, it is possible to secure a sufficient quorum for passage." Once the amendment is passed by the National Assembly, it will be finalized through a national referendum.

Meanwhile, when asked about his future political plans, Speaker Woo said, "Right now, I am dedicating all my energy solely to accomplishing the constitutional amendment and am not considering any plans beyond that," refraining from further comment.

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