DPP Blasted for Deleted Post on South Korea Martial Law Crisis

TaiwanPlus News

Opposition Kuomintang lawmakers say the ruling Democratic Progressive Party legislative caucus should apologize for a since-deleted social media post reacting to South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's unexpected declaration of martial law.

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00:00As the world watched chaos unfold in Seoul after President Yoon Seok-yol declared emergency

00:07martial law, Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party took to social media, posting this on

00:13its official account representing the party's lawmakers, seemingly comparing South Korea's

00:19situation to Taiwan, by listing how the opposition Kuomintang and Taiwan People's Party, who

00:25together control the legislature, have either blocked or, quote, maliciously amended the

00:30rule of law.

00:32The post has since been deleted after it drew a backlash from opposition lawmakers and others

00:38who saw it as apparent support of martial law.

00:41The DPP was quick to clarify, explaining in a second post that there was no intention

00:47to support the imposition of martial rule, and that they were simply relaying international

00:52news and comparing it with the domestic political situation.

00:56Ultimately, they expressed regret for causing a commotion, a message reiterated by party

01:02lawmakers in person.

01:22The DPP was born when the now opposition Kuomintang or KMT was in power, a brutal post-war

01:35martial law era that lasted nearly four decades.

01:39The DPP lawmakers acknowledged this in their updated post, saying they know how harmful

01:45martial law is to democracy.

01:47But this has not appeased their opposition counterparts, who continue to question why

01:52the DPP appeared to support what was an unpopular and now unsuccessful martial law order in

01:59Seoul.

02:00The KMT has also accused the DPP of attempting to quash dissenting voices, and are demanding

02:06more than an expression of regret.

02:17The KMT has also called on President Lai Ching-te, who is out of the country visiting allies

02:40in the Pacific, to apologize for his party-mates' comments.

02:44They have made it clear they have nothing more to say.

02:48As South Korean President Yoon now faces impeachment, his shock martial law decree has also caused

02:54chaos here in neighboring Taiwan, fanning the flame of political infighting, with each

02:59party pushing for what it believes is a democratic society.

03:04Luffy Lee and Joyce Zen for Taiwan Plus.

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