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Should the National Police Chief echo controversial views on Yeosu-Suncheon Incident?

Published: 05 Nov. 2025, 00:02

Ko Jung-ae

The author is the editor-in-chief at JoongAng Sunday.

On Nov. 3, as darkness settled over Uiju-ro in central Seoul, visitors paused before a wall engraved with the names of fallen officers — Kang Gihwang, Kang Daehong, Kang Deokwon and many more.

A commemorative poem by poet Moon Chung-hee reads:
“Our homeland, rising to the center of the world / with longing in every heart / solemnly engraves your love and sacrifice / in the future's memory.”

Prime Minister Kim Min-seok (center) and South Jeolla Governor Kim Yung-rok arrive at a joint memorial service marking the 77th anniversary of the Yeosu-Suncheon Incident at the Jirisan History and Culture Center in Gurye County, South Jeolla, on Oct. 19. [YONHAP]

This is the Police Memorial Park, honoring more than 13,000 police officers who died around the time of the Korean War. Many served in the Jeolla region, where violence was particularly severe. When the JoongAng Ilbo newsroom was still in Seosomun, reporters would sometimes visit to reflect on the cost of state-building.

The reason for returning here today lies across the street, at the Korean National Police Agency. Acting Commissioner General Yoo Jae-seong, who represents the national police, has recently stirred controversy with his comments on the 1948 Yeosu-Suncheon Incident.

During a parliamentary audit last month, Yoo said the uprising led by the 14th Regiment of the Korean Constabulary — the predecessor of the Republic of Korea Army — was “not a rebellion.” His statement followed criticism from Rep. Jeong Chun-saeng of the Rebuilding Korea Party, who accused the Jeonbuk Provincial Police of historic distortion for using the term “Yeosu-Suncheon Rebellion” in a museum display. Although the police later changed the wording to “Yeosu-Suncheon Incident,” they left in a phrase crediting the police for “significant achievements in suppressing leftist rebellion.” Jeong called this unacceptable, and Yoo replied, “We will correct it” and “review all other provincial police agencies.”

Yoo’s stance appears influenced by President Lee Jae Myung, who at the 77th anniversary of the incident wrote that “about 2,000 soldiers of the 14th Regiment refused to point their guns at the people during the suppression of the Jeju April 3 Uprising,” praising them for resisting an unjust order.

But even if they claimed moral grounds, can one justify their killing of fellow soldiers, police officers and civilians in Yeosu and Suncheon? The rebels demanded the withdrawal of U.S. forces, the collapse of the Syngman Rhee government and pledged loyalty to the People’s Republic of Korea. If this is not rebellion, what is?

Police were primary targets. Longstanding resentment tied to the colonial past and tensions between the military and the police intensified the violence. A 2010 report by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission includes chilling testimony:

“After massacring police officers, the rebels dumped 50 to 60 bodies in an air-raid shelter from the Japanese colonial era behind Yeosu Police Station. When retrieved, the bodies were severely decomposed. They were laid in the rear plaza of the station, and families identified them by scars.” (Kim O-O, Yeosu Police investigation unit)

Other testimonies describe the bodies of the Yeosu police chief and another officer left at the roadside, and the brutal killing of the Suncheon police chief.

Blood was met with more blood. In the suppression that followed, innocent civilians were killed by state forces. These acts are shameful and must be acknowledged. Yet the fact remains that the uprising was initiated by a group the rejected the Republic of Korea. Deep ideological divisions — especially within the military — pushed the young nation to the brink.

Acting National Police Agency Commissioner General Yoo Jae-seong speaks during a ceremony marking the 68th 112 Day at the National Police Agency headquarters in Seodaemun District, Seoul, on Nov. 3. [KOREAN NATIONAL POLICE AGENCY]

Choi Young-seop, who was then a cadet at the Korea Naval Academy, recalled in “Mount Baekdu Embracing the Sea” (2018):
“The three of us — including my two roommates — slept with rifles loaded, taking turns standing guard against leftist cadets. We blocked the dormitory door with cabinets and desks.” Even the Naval Academy in Jinhae was on edge.

It is one thing for politicians to use history selectively — though that is also deeply troubling — but quite another for the head of the national police to echo politicized narratives. If he did so knowing the facts, it is regrettable; if out of ignorance, it is alarming.

In either case, it cheapens the sacrifice of those whose names are etched in stone just a few steps away.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.