To the respected citizens and my beloved party comrades.
Two weeks have already passed since I was admitted here.
The year-end and New Year period has arrived, and since I have not been able to reply individually to the many letters you have sent, I am offering my thanks collectively like this and sharing news of myself.
The temperature has dropped and the building is old so there are drafts, but it's bearable enough.
I put the hot water provided by the facility into a plastic container (called a 'bio-tong'), wrap it in a blanket and hold it against my back.
As for the food, think of army food. It's edible.
Snacks can be purchased, but I'm avoiding them as much as possible. Since I inevitably get less exercise than outside, I should cut back on snacks.
The correctional officers are kind as well.
There are also many MZ-generation correctional officers. In my late twenties I spent about 5 months in the Seoul Detention Center (violation of Article 7 of the National Security Act, one year in prison suspended for two years, later pardoned and reinstated). Compared with those days, their sense of vocation and awareness of human rights appear to have risen considerably.
'Correctional reform' is an important task for Korean criminal justice. Resolving the overcrowding that causes all sorts of problems (currently around 150%, it seems), developing diverse rehabilitation programs, improving the poor treatment of correctional officers, transferring the 'authority to execute sentences' monopolized by prosecutors to the Correctional Service Headquarters, and so on. These were the tasks I intended to take on — along with prosecutorial reform — when I was appointed Minister of Justice in 2019. I had barely laid a hand on them (I visited Uijeongbu Prison, whose facilities were the oldest at the time, and had a frank conversation with the correctional officers; that memory keeps coming back to me) before stepping down after only 35 days. I hope the next administration's presidential office and Ministry of Justice will take an interest.
Putting together the news I hear in this place, Yoon Suk-yeol and his group are plotting a return.
The unconstitutional and unlawful emergency martial law of December 3 was thwarted by the resistance of the people, and the impeachment motion against Yoon Suk-yeol, the ringleader of the insurrection, was carried, but Yoon Suk-yeol and his group have no intention of stepping down quietly. Yoon Suk-yeol maintains an extralegal attitude, refusing to respond either to the constitutional trial or to the investigation, and is waging a shameless holdout operation. The People Power Party has become a 'Yoon Suk-yeol shield party', hesitating even to apologize for the martial law and resorting to tactics to delay and obstruct Yoon Suk-yeol's impeachment trial. Far-right forces insist on the legitimacy of the martial law on YouTube and at outdoor rallies. Through this affair, the grotesque anti-constitutional regressive forces that had been hiding behind the 'K-democracy' we took pride in are uniting as one.
Fortunately the full picture of the December 3 insurrection and military rebellion is being revealed one piece at a time. The specific orders of the ringleader Yoon Suk-yeol and the crimes of the former and current commanders who carried out key missions are being confirmed. And the great people, without letting down their guard, are filling the winter streets holding candles or light sticks. Conservative media including Chosun, JoongAng and Dong-A are also condemning the crimes of Yoon Suk-yeol's group and the current system of evading responsibility. An overwhelming majority of figures in the legal profession and legal academia are emphasizing the illegality of the emergency martial law and the legitimacy of Yoon Suk-yeol's impeachment.
Respected citizens, beloved party comrades!
The impeachment of Yoon Suk-yeol and the punishment of his group is not a factional issue. Nor is it a matter of progressive versus conservative. Yoon Suk-yeol's crimes and anti-constitutional words and deeds are incomparably heavier and graver than Park Geun-hye's. This is an incident that brought down the constitutional order of the Republic of Korea itself. The bizarre reality in which the ringleader of an insurrection retains the presidency must be resolved swiftly. For as long as this reality continues, national dignity will fall and people's livelihoods and the economy will not climb off the floor. Resolute and swift action is needed from the Constitutional Court, the CIO, the prosecution and the National Office of Investigation. A briskly paced impeachment trial and immediate arrest and detention are needed.
Those who say "Isn't a swift impeachment of Yoon Suk-yeol doing a favor for the Democratic Party and Lee Jae-myung?" are disrupters of the constitution and of the restoration of democracy. The prompt removal of Yoon Suk-yeol's group is a task that takes precedence over any factional interest. It is the work of rebuilding the very foundation of the Republic of Korea.
They say the temperature is dropping. Take your hat, gloves and scarf, and please raise your candles and light sticks. Yoon Suk-yeol's group are not counterparts for dialogue or compromise. They are nothing but subjects of judgment and punishment. I wish everyone health and good fortune. We will win. I will close here.
2024.12.27. Respectfully, Cho Kuk.
