Yoon Seok-yeol Attends Jeju 4·3 Memorial Ceremony... "I Decided to Keep My Promise to Come"

The First Case of Attendance by a Conservative Party President in Practice

People Power Party Jeju Governor Preliminary Candidates' 'Welcome' Comments

[Jeju=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Park Chang-won] President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol will attend the 74th Jeju April 3rd Victims Memorial Ceremony to be held on the 3rd.

Kim Eun-hye, spokesperson for the president-elect, said in a briefing on the 1st, "When President-elect Yoon visited Jeju on February 5th, he said he would come again once he became president-elect, and he decided to keep that promise made to the people."

She added, "President-elect Yoon emphasized that regardless of the reason, it is the duty and obligation of all citizens to honor the souls and warmly comfort the innocent civilians who were wrongfully sacrificed."

The attendance of President-elect Yoon at the April 3rd Memorial Ceremony before the new government’s inauguration is interpreted as having special significance.

In particular, this is the first case of a conservative government president (including president-elect) attending the April 3rd Memorial Ceremony.

Since the first memorial service was held at the April 3rd Peace Park, the first time a sitting president attended the April 3rd Memorial Ceremony was former President Roh Moo-hyun in 2006.

Since then, conservative presidents such as Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye did not attend the April 3rd Memorial Ceremony even once.

Earlier, when President-elect Yoon visited the Jeju April 3rd Peace Park on February 5th, he positively considered the request from the bereaved families to attend this year’s memorial ceremony.

Meanwhile, as news of President-elect Yoon’s attendance at the April 3rd Memorial Ceremony spread, the People Power Party’s Jeju gubernatorial candidates issued statements welcoming the news.

Candidate Heo Hyang-jin pledged, "I pay tribute to the sincerity of the president-elect who kept his promise to the people of Jeju, and I will actively work together to ensure that the pledges presented by President-elect Yoon can be promoted with momentum."

Candidate Jang Seong-cheol said, "Jeju is currently resolving the unresolved issues of April 3rd one by one. Taking President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol’s attendance at the Jeju April 3rd Victims Memorial Ceremony as an opportunity, I will take responsibility and do my utmost as a candidate for Jeju governor to ensure that the remaining April 3rd issues are sequentially resolved."

Jeju=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Park Chang-won captain@asiae.co.kr