South Korean citizens were shocked after President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law on Tuesday night. Many reported not receiving emergency disaster alert messages regarding the declaration. At approximately 10:23 p.m. on Tuesday, the President announced martial law during an emergency address from the presidential office in Yongsan.
This declaration marked the first martial law enforcement in 44 years, following the May 1980 Gwangju Uprising. Tensions escalated as armed troops moved toward the National Assembly and city and provincial government offices were closed one after another.
However, citizens learned about the situation primarily through news reports, as the Ministry of the Interior and Safety (MOIS), the responsible authority for issuing disaster alerts, did not send emergency messages about the martial law declaration.
The MOIS is now under scrutiny for its handling of the situation. According to disaster alert broadcasting guidelines, the ministry is required to request the transmission of disaster alerts in cases of natural disasters, large-scale social disasters, national emergencies, or civil defense training, among other situations.
Despite the martial law declaration, no emergency messages were issued, with the MOIS claiming the situation did not meet the criteria for such alerts. On Wednesday, the ministry confirmed that no disaster messages were sent even though President Yoon had declared martial law.
Although tensions were high with armed troops entering the National Assembly and helicopters flying overhead, no disaster alerts were issued. This has sparked criticism from citizens. The MOIS also failed to notify citizens of the National Assembly’s subsequent passage of a resolution to lift martial law.
Some citizens expressed frustration, stating, “Emergency alerts go off at all hours, but they didn’t send one when it mattered,” and “Without a message, those who don’t watch TV wouldn’t have known.” Others criticized the inconsistency: “They didn’t alert us about martial law but kept sending alerts at midnight about balloons.”
Emergency disaster messages issued by the MOIS have often been criticized for their frequency. However, the failure to send alerts during a critical situation has led to significant backlash. An MOIS official explained, “The operational department determined that the martial law declaration did not meet the criteria for issuing disaster alerts, so no messages were sent.”
The official added, “While there are exceptions for civil defense emergencies, disaster messages are generally reserved for disaster-related situations. The state of emergency specified in the guidelines refers to scenarios like war, and the operational department did not consider yesterday’s situation to fall under that category.”
Shortly after Yoon declared martial law, the National Assembly convened at 1 a.m. on Wednesday for an emergency session to pass a resolution demanding its repeal. The resolution was unanimously passed by all 190 lawmakers present, effectively nullifying the martial law declaration just two hours and 37 minutes after it was issued.
At approximately 4:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Yoon delivered an emergency address, stating, “I declared martial law with a stubborn will to save the nation from anti-state forces attempting to paralyze the state’s essential functions and destroy the constitutional order of liberal democracy. However, I will accept the National Assembly’s demand and lift martial law.”
Earlier that day, Minister Lee Sang Min of the MOIS chaired an emergency meeting with senior officials following Yoon’s declaration. Minister Lee instructed public officials not to be swayed, to continue providing administrative services without disruption, and to prioritize disaster safety management to minimize public inconvenience. However, critics argued that these measures were insufficient.
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