Lee Jae-myung and Kim Dong-yeon, candidates in the Democratic Party of Korea presidential primary, reached a consensus on the 18th that individuals who instigate illegal insurrections should not be granted amnesty.
Lee Jae-myung, Kim Dong-yeon, and Kim Kyeong-soo took part in the MBC 100-minute debate titled ‘First Democratic Party presidential primary candidate debate’ held that afternoon in Sangam-dong, Mapo District, Seoul.
Candidate Lee Jae-myung asked Kim Dong-yeon, “What measures or countermeasures do you think are necessary to prevent such incidents from happening again, considering that something we thought was impossible for decades actually happened?”
In response, candidate Kim Dong-yeon said, “To completely end insurrections, we should strengthen constitutional requirements for the president's declaration of martial law,” adding, “We should also implement measures in our amnesty law to prevent the exercise of pardon rights for those who instigate illegal insurrections in order to fundamentally block (illegal martial law).”
Candidate Lee Jae-myung noted, “I completely agree.”
He continued, “We need to strengthen the requirements for martial law so that it cannot be declared again, but the problem is that the requirements were violated this time as well. I think it won't be easy just with the system. Isn’t the essence of this illegal military coup a violation of the system?”
He further stated, “Amnesty could also be a pretty reasonable measure, I believe,” and added, “I think it's a quite good opinion (from Kim) because one might think, ‘Even if I do this, I can be forgiven. If it succeeds, it’s fortunate; if it fails, I might be released again due to political dynamics.’”
Candidate Kim Kyeong-soo mentioned in this regard, “When we discuss constitutional amendments next time, we should definitely delete the provisions that allow for martial law even during peacetime from the constitution.”