<글로벌 한국인 시국선언> 영문판 전문
(…with permission, Mr. Speaker, I shall give, to our audience today, our Statement of The Current Affairs.)
I extend my heartfelt thanks to everyone here today - both those present in person and those joining us online - for sharing this moment with us. It’s a rare privilege to stand before such a vast audience and speak to you in my own voice.
We must remember what brings us all here today. We, the Global Koreans, have united under our combined conviction. Despite our physical distance, and despite our access to opportunities beyond the nation’s borders, we do not, and will not, forsake our homeland. As individuals, each of us standing here today are all unique, yet such divergence will never prove enough to sever the bond, that ties us, to the Republic of Korea, and our duty to safeguard the wellspring of our shared identity.
It is in this spirit, that I, Min Jung, representing the combined voices of us, the Global Koreans, lead by a passionate group of Korean International students, chant in unison, for the preservation of the sovereignty of our nation.
Our unconditional love for our birthplace, both spiritual and literal, shall help us begin our first step, in our combined march towards our goal, of preserving the society, our long-kept liberal democracy, with our .
Let us begin with mentioning that the very conditions, under which President Yoon’s martial law was declared, were those, which, by their very nature, affirm its legitimacy, and legality. No citizens were left stranded, nor was their freedom of movement taken away. The freedom of press was upheld, there were no restrictions to parliamentary access - these alone, speak to the necessity, the inevitability, the legality of his decision. In recognising this, we also resolve to ensure that the world, too, is made to recognise it.
Yet, we are also able to see, how, from the disconnected outside world, the event of the 3rd of December last year, might have looked a little too sudden. Perhaps that is why foreign media were so immediately keen to report it, as the rebirth of a dictatorship, South American style.
But, once anybody starts researching, and digging into the very political, societal, economic and diplomatic context, which surrounds the President’s declaration of the emergency martial law, it is both inevitable and unavoidable to truly understand, that, the martial law has in fact saved, our nation from falling under the tyrannical dictatorship.
First, even our people seem to overlook one critical thing about us.
The Korean peninsula, is still, technically, at war.
The unlawful attempt of annexation lead by North Korea, some three quarters of a century ago, have eventuated to the Korean War. Such is still, at a pause. Considering this, us, the Republic of Korea, with not just one, but three adversaries up north - the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Russia, and of course, China, are in a truly unique diplomatic position.
Among the three, China, by far, is the biggest powers-to-be, within the East Asia.
They want China to be the ruling country of the region, and they want the whole of East Asia to fall under their hands. This is shown particularly well, in a number of policies from China themselves, and especially, their Belt & Road Initiatives.
What hinders their goal to move forward at a pace they desire, is how the trilateral alliance between us - the South Korea, Japan, and United States, especially if one were to combine Taiwan with us, makes it so, that the sacrifices needed in the contingencies of a Total Warfare, will be far greater than whatever their gains can be.
However, to turn any one of the aforementioned four nations, so they are massively in favour of China, would be to lean into the collapse of peace, security and integrity of the East Asia.
During the peacetime, there would only be two ways of turning a country, formerly an adversary, into a nation on one’s side - the first would be to do so with diplomatic pushes for better relationship, and the other - the one to be cautious against - is to use a method of hostile operations so covert, that slowly, a country commits to a total reversal of a diplomatic posture. In other words, you would have to use the spies.
Chinese spies were uncovered left and right across all over the Western hemisphere. Even within the Tory party, a Chinese spy was uncovered, and surprisingly, he was not a Chinese-British individual; no, he was in fact, a perfectly ordinary white old man. Similar cases were also discovered in the United States.
Both the UK and the US do not possess a direct adversary who requires the level of urgency similar to ours, nor are they at war with anybody.
So, if even they are so liable to falter, what brings us the guarantee, that we would be so safe? Indeed, we weren’t so safe.
We believe that, to the Western world, the forces of radical leftism would be so awfully familiar. The nine years of Justin Trudeau’s narcissistic chaos has brought Canada to be the safe haven for criminals. The Democratic Party of the United States of the recent past has been the leading force behind total ruining of the nation once so competent. The Labour Party of the United Kingdom, lead by Mr. Shameful Starmer, especially in the current months, have brought along, the slaughter of the British pride, and the sovereignty. The European Union’s increasingly radical inclinations, show the same pattern.
All in all, the misdeeds of the far left forces in the West are quite literally uncountable.
The very institutions that once championed industrial progress, economic revival, and the triumph of free societies over totalitarian regimes, are now turning against the very principles, that secured their success.
Our nation, the Republic of Korea, has suffered from the political landscape quite indifferent.
First, the party has committed to a total of twenty-nine motions for impeachment of government officials - twenty-two of those, prior to the declaration of the martial law. The numbers alone sound abnormal, but it gets worse. Most of those motioned for impeachment were at the leading positions of many of our governmental agencies. Meaning, our government were left without any leadership for a prolonged period of time. It is hard to imagine any governmental actions would see much progress at all, let alone succeed in one.
Second, they have made almost all of the essential government budget for the year 2025. The budget for the Blue Whale Project, and enhancing the youth employment and economic opportunities, were reduced so severely, that they might as well not exist at all. Speaking of not existing, that was the budget for the Presidential Office’s diplomatic expenditures, the special investigative forces support for the police, and critically, all budgets regarding our nuclear powerplant technology - all of them, were set at precisely zero.
Thirdly, their attempts to suppress our thoughts, our media, and public opinions, are truly diabolical. They have violated privacy through nationwide surveillance on Kakaotalk, undermined fairness by pressuring polling agencies that publish unfavourable results, and threatened press independence by urging economic pressure against specific media outlets.
These are hardly an act of patriotism, and it is unimaginable, that, anyone who isn’t an outright spy, could commit to such.
The declaration of an emergency martial law on the 3rd December was to inform our people of such threats, and an anti-state forces. It is not a coincidence that we refer to the event as an emergency enlightenment act.
Yet, the DP and associated personnel are still trying to pull our President, Yoon Seok-Yeol, out of his presidency, and into an unlawful, unjustifiable solitary confinement.
In light of this, how could we not refer the DP to be the anti-state forces, that they truly are?
In considering the urgency and the severity, to refuse action now, is to side with wrongdoing. A citizen who shirks responsibility is no citizen at all, and those who hope for change but refuse to labour for it are no more than beggars, waiting for fortune to fall into their hands. Much inspired by the resolve shown by Korea’s students, emboldened by their conviction, we, the Global Koreans, now stand alongside them.
To add to that, this is no Korean domestic issue - as mentioned above, for us to falter, ultimately indicates for the total collapse of East Asia altogether.
Think of our, Japanese, and Taiwanese industries - could the West really do without K-Culture, Samsung, LG, Toyota, Sony, and TSMC? I doubt that very much, especially considering how the total GDP including China is at least a quarter of that of the whole Earth.
Moreover, for us to falter, is to signal to the world, that the geo-politically, economically, industrially, and culturally significant portion of the East, is slowly tucking under the hands of the dictatorship.
Please, we ask, to recognise the severity and criticality of our situation.
Finally, I say this to our neighbours overseas.
Going back about half a century, when we were at similar economic levels as our Northern neighbours, we sent our nurses and miners to Germany, and we sent our troops to Vietnam. Even decades later, we sent our special forces to Iraq. Korean music, TV programmes, and numerous other explosion of popularity surrounding the Korean culture, all contributed to how we are looked upon from outside, nowadays.
Remember, that, the national reputation also equals the parallel of your own personal reputation. Your treatment of the mother country represents the treatment that you may receive. What goes out, always comes back in. The fight is on, and the doors are open. Enter as however you wish, fight with us however you can - our combined resolve is a paramount.
Let it be assured, that the Republic of Korea shall never falter, not so long as those who cherish it, remain steadfast, in its defence.
Thank you.
Chief Representative & Project/Team Lead
Min Jung
