Novelist Hwang Sok-yong criticized the December 3 martial law situation, calling the Yoon Suk Yeol administration’s attempted coup a “horrible delusion.” At a press conference held on the 11th at the National Museum of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, during the founding meeting of the Union of Anti-Japanese Revolutionary Groups, Hwang emphasized that the president should be impeached to halt the dangerous duties of the military commander-in-chief.
Hwang, who served as the Chairman of the Preparatory Committee for the Anti-Japanese Union, was elected as the Chairman at this founding ceremony. Composed of nine organizations including the Daegu Lee Yuk-sa Commemoration Project Association, Mongyang Academy, and the 6.10 Independence Movement Descendants Association, the Anti-Japanese Union was initiated in January this year to honor anti-Japanese revolutionaries and officially began its activities with this founding event.
In September, Hwang also called for President Yoon’s resignation through a national emergency statement by the National Emergency Meeting. Hwang commented, “In the September statement, I half-jokingly said that the Yoon Suk Yeol administration might not last till the end of the year, and it seems to have come true. It was a difficult situation to proceed with impeachment, but suddenly the administration imploded.”
He added, “Since there was a military rebellion, arresting without a warrant is legally justified,” asserting that “(President Yoon) would be brought down by the vibrant youths in their 20s and 30s in the square.”
Lee Joon-sik, former director of the Independence Hall of Korea, who attended the event with Hwang, also emphasized, “Organizations related to the independence movement have repeatedly warned about the historical coup attempted by the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, and I believe this rebellion attempt is in line with that historical coup.”
The Anti-Japanese Union, which officially announced its establishment that day, plans to undertake various projects such as investigation, collection, and organization of information on anti-Japanese revolutionaries. They also intend to work on restoring distorted history and recording oral histories from the families of anti-Japanese revolutionaries.