Yoon marks Gwangju anniversary, extols 'spirit of May'

President Yoon Suk Yeol called for Korea to uphold the "spirit of May" and fight against challengers that "threaten freedom and democracy" in an address marking the 1980 pro-democracy uprising in Gwangju on Thursday.

President Yoon Suk Yeol, center, sings the song ″March for the Beloved″ alongside a group of mothers of victims of the 1980 pro-democracy uprising in a ceremony marking the 43rd anniversary of the May 18 Democratization Movement at the national cemetery in Gwangju on Thursday. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

President Yoon Suk Yeol called for Korea to uphold the "spirit of May" and fight against challengers that "threaten freedom and democracy" in an address marking the 1980 pro-democracy uprising in Gwangju on Thursday.

"We stand here together today to remember the May resistance, which defended the values of liberal democracy and human rights at the cost of blood 43 years ago, and to honor the democratic souls," Yoon said in his speech at a ceremony commemorating the May 18 Democratization Movement.

"To remember and inherit the spirit of May, we must boldly fight against all forces and challenges that threaten freedom and democracy and have such practical courage."

The ceremony marking the 43rd anniversary of the popular uprising was held at the May 18th National Cemetery and attended by around 3,400 people, including Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and other government officials, families of victims, National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo and some 170 lawmakers from the People Power Party (PPP) and Democratic Party (DP).

Yoon said that the popular uprising reflects the "spirit of constitutional freedom" and that "the spirit of May commands us to practice and protect liberal democracy."

He added that it would be "embarrassing to talk about the spirit of May if we do not fight against internal and external challenges that cause a crisis of democracy."

Recalling such a spirit, he called on Gwangju and the Honam region, referring to the Jeolla area, to "achieve industrial advancement and economic prosperity with the spirit of creativity and innovation."

Yoon also sang along with the crowd the song "March for the Beloved," considered an anthem for democracy activists for decades, for a second year.

The song was written in 1982 for a posthumous wedding ceremony of two protestors killed by military forces during the 1980 Gwangju uprising. Hundreds of civilians were estimated to have died in the suppression of the uprising against the authoritarian Chun Doo Hwan regime.

In 1997, the government designated May 18 as an official commemoration day for the democracy movement, and until 2008, singing the song was required during the state-sponsored ceremony.

However, during the conservative Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye governments, the song was generally sung by a chorus excluded from the official ceremony because of controversy over the song and its ideology.

Under liberal President Moon Jae-in, the song was again sung by all participants in the ceremony, and Yoon likewise continued the tradition in 2022.

Yoon became the first conservative president to enter through the "Gate of Democracy," the main gate of the May 18th National Cemetery, in last year's ceremony.

Breaking from the custom of the president entering the ceremony with key political figures, Yoon entered the "Gate of Democracy" with 15 "mothers of May" who lost their children in the uprising in Thursday's ceremony.

This marks the first time a conservative president attended a May 18 ceremony for two consecutive years.

On Wednesday, DP Chairman Lee Jae-myung proposed a "one-point" amendment to include the spirit of the May 18 Gwangju uprising in the preamble of the Constitution.

Lee proposed that the PPP and DP work together to carry out the constitutional amendment, which is also consistent with one of Yoon's campaign pledges, ahead of the general elections next April.

Recalling the violence of the May 18 uprising, Lee told reporters after the ceremony in Gwangju that a responsible government and the PPP should "not only reflect and commemorate it with words but show it through action."

However, presidential officials Thursday said that the one-point constitutional amendment proposal appears to be an attempt by the DP to divert attention away from scandals surrounding the party rather than respecting the spirit of the May uprising.

President Yoon Suk Yeol, center, pays respects to families of victims of the 1980 pro-democracy uprising at the national cemetery in Gwangju on Thursday ahead of a ceremony marking the 43rd anniversary of the May 18 Democratization Movement. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]