Lawmaker Lee Jin-suk defends controversial forum on Gwangju Uprising amid criticism

People Power Party lawmaker Lee Jin-suk is under fire for organizing a parliamentary forum that sought to re-examine the May 18th Gwangju Democratization Movement. The event, held at the National Assembly Library, has drawn sharp criticism from political opponents and civic groups who accuse it of distorting historical facts and downplaying the significance of the pro-democracy uprising.

During the forum, former Seoul National University professor Lee Young-hoon, known for his conservative views, referred to the Gwangju events as a "ten-day disturbance" and argued for a need to dismantle and reconstruct the "cultural power" of the May 18th movement, which he claimed is monopolized by left-wing political and historical forces. The attendance of Huh Hwa-pyung, a key figure in the 1979 coup, further fueled the controversy, eliciting strong protests from the audience.

In response to the backlash, Lee Jin-suk defended the forum, questioning the intensity of the criticism. "If a gathering to welcome Kim Jong Un were held in the middle of Gwangju, would it have received as much criticism and condemnation as yesterday's forum?" she asked on Facebook. Lee argued that debating the May 18th movement, which is proposed for inclusion in the preamble of the constitution, is essential and that the movement should not be the exclusive property of any single political faction or region.

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If a gathering to welcome Kim Jong Un were held in the middle of Gwangju, would it have received as much criticism and condemnation as yesterday's forum? To not even debate the May 18th movement, which is to be included in the preamble of the constitution, is absurd. May 18th is not the exclusive property of a specific faction, nor should it be the exclusive property of a specific region.

Lee also noted that the forum, despite some disruptions, proceeded for three and a half hours with hundreds of attendees remaining until the end. She contended that prohibiting such discussions would be anti-democratic, suppressing freedom of thought and expression, which are vital assets of a democratic nation.

The People Power Party leadership has distanced itself from Lee's event, with floor leader Jeong Jin-seok reportedly requesting its cancellation beforehand. The party's acting spokesperson, Choi Eun-seok, stated that the party considers the forum's holding in the National Assembly inappropriate but acknowledged the difficulty in forcibly preventing individual lawmakers from organizing such events. Meanwhile, the main opposition Democratic Party has called for Lee's expulsion from the party and urged the People Power Party to clarify its stance on historical distortion.

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The floor leader Jeong Jin-seok also requested the cancellation of the forum before it was held, and he believes the forum was highly inappropriate.