Home > National > K-campus

'Remove him immediately': University students join calls for President Yoon to resign

Published: 05 Dec. 2024, 15:47

LEE TAE-HEE
[email protected]

Hongik University students gather infront of the university's main gate in Mapo District, western Seoul, on Thursday to condemn President Yoon Suk Yeol declaring martial law. [NEWS1]

University students are joining the growing calls for President Yoon Suk Yeol to resign, with even his alma mater holding a general student assembly to issue a statement on behalf of students.

The student council of Seoul National University, President Yoon's alma mater, will hold the assembly on Thursday at 5 p.m.

During the assembly, the student council plans to discuss the details of a statement they will upload, urging the president to resign following the declaration of martial law. Although the student council released a statement on Wednesday condemning President Yoon’s decision, it did not explicitly call for his resignation.

"Yoon Suk Yeol's emergency martial law disrespects the constitution and the roots of democracy, and is a clear violation of the constitution," the student council wrote in a statement on Thursday. "We need to decide whether we will stay silent or act under the name of Seoul National University."

For the assembly to be official, at least one-tenth of the student body — more than 1,700 students — must be present.

Other university student councils have also condemned the president’s martial law order through statements and joint declarations.

Student councils from Ewha Womans University, Konkuk University and Hongik University are just a few of the student groups that held press conferences on Thursday to denounce President Yoon’s enactment of martial law.

"During the two and a half years of President Yoon Suk Yeol's term — about half of his presidency — we have lost too much," said Konkuk University's student council. "We cannot put the remaining two and a half years of our future, Korea's future, or even a single day in his hands. We need to remove him immediately."

Student councils from Yonsei University, Korea University and Sogang University also released statements condemning the law.

KAIST is another addition to the list, with its undergraduate student council uploading a statement on Thursday.

"We condemn the violent behavior of a national leader that goes against democracy and the law," read the university's statement. "We strongly denounce the decision that misuses the power entrusted by the sovereign people."

BY LEE TAE-HEE [[email protected]]