67.4% of the Public Supports Inclusion of "May 18 Spirit" in the Constitution Pre-amble

Nearly 7 out of 10 adults in the Republic of Korea, or 67.4%, agree on including the "May Spirit," which is recognized as a factor that helped prevent the martial law situation of December 3, in the Constitution preamble.

According to the "2023 May 18 Awareness Survey" released by the May 18 Memorial Foundation on the 13th, 47.4% of respondents answered that it is "very necessary," and 20% said it is "generally necessary."

This survey was conducted by a public opinion research agency on 1,000 adult men and women nationwide, and is carried out annually to gauge public awareness of the May 18 Democratization Movement. Notably, this year, 95.3% of respondents reported that they are aware of the May 18 event, an increase of 4.7 percentage points from the previous year (90.6%), indicating a growing national interest.

Growing National Interest

Urgent Issues Related to May 18 and the New Government's Role

Regarding issues that need urgent clarification related to May 18, the response "Concealment, distortion, and manipulation of the May 18 Democratization Movement" was the highest at 33.9%. This was followed by "Circumstances and responsibilities surrounding the military's firing" (24.2%), "Allegations of clandestine burial of victims" (15.1%), "Deaths and injuries of soldiers and police" (10.2%), and "Assault on the armory" (5.8%).

As for the May 18 tasks that the new government, which will be launched next month, should prioritize, "truth verification" was the highest at 32.8%, followed by "prevention of distortion and disparagement" (20%), "reflection of the May 18 spirit in the Constitution" (19.8%), and "improvement of recognition and treatment of democratic veterans" (19.6%).

Furthermore, regarding the retrieval of slush funds accumulated by figures from the new military regime, such as Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo, 73% responded that it is "very necessary" or "necessary," indicating that there is a national consensus for addressing historical grievances.

National Consensus on Addressing Historical Grievances

A representative from the May 18 Memorial Foundation stated, "We conduct annual surveys to understand the awareness level of May 18," and added, "Based on the survey results, we will promote and develop related projects to strive for the global recognition of May 18."

Image Source: May 18 Memorial Foundation