Chicago's Korean community reacts to political turmoil in South Korea

Chicago's Korean community was rattled Tuesday following the news that South Korea's president declared martial law amid an ongoing feud with his political rivals.

President Yoon Suk Yeol's order briefly threw the country into turmoil, sparking mass protests in the early morning hours. Less than three hours later, South Korea's National Assembly unanimously voted to lift it, vowing to protect democracy. Yoon eventually backed down from his declaration.

“Community members are concerned about what’s happening. Many of them are here as Korean Americans, but they still have family and people they care about in Korea,” said Danae Kovac, the executive director of the HANA Center, a Chicago-based community organization serving Korean Americans and immigrants in the region.

Following the recent U.S. presidential election, Kovac said Chicago’s Korean immigrant community was already on edge. About 62,000 Koreans live in the area, according to 2020 census figures.

“This is causing more turmoil and concern in the community here in Chicago," Kovac said. "We are already feeling a lot of anxiety and fear because of the recent election and the impending attacks on immigrants and people of color here in this country."

Tuesday’s events marked the first time in more than four decades that martial law was declared in South Korea, which saw the end of a military dictatorship and the start of democratization in 1987. Martial law was last declared in October 1979, following the assassination of former military dictator Park Chung-hee.

Yoon's attempt was also a reminder that South Korea began as a dictatorship, said Ji-Yeon Yuh, a professor in Asian American history and Asian diasporas at Northwestern University.

"Until the 1980s, South Korea was a military dictatorship and martial law was declared frequently," Yuh said. "The people rose up frequently; there were lots of crackdowns by the military."

But, following several decades of struggle, South Korea became a democracy in the 1980s, Yuh said.

"South Korea went from the dark days of a severely oppressive military dictatorship to a really vibrant and active participatory democracy," Yuh said, adding, "To the point where citizens can force South Korea's president out of office, and once they leave office are held accountable in a court of law for their crimes and then convicted and jailed for their corruption."

While Yoon's actions are certainly alarming, Yuh said, the response by the Korean people and lawmakers shows the might of an active democracy.

"The people of South Korea said, 'We are not going back,'" Yuh said. "Martial law is a regressive step. We are not going back to those dark days of a military dictatorship."

For some Korean Americans, the memories of life under that dictatorship are still fresh, Kovac said.

“The military dictatorship was not that long ago,” she said. “People remember the history not just as a distant memory. Some of our older community members lived it in Korea, while others were here seeing what was happening.”

The HANA Center serves 16,000 people each year, the majority of whom are Koreans but they also work with other multi-ethnic groups, Kovac said. The organization provides a range of social services and advocates for stronger policies that support immigrants.

Yoon declared martial law to eliminate “anti-state” forces as he struggles against the opposition, South Korea's liberal Democratic Party, which controls the country’s parliament. He also accuses the party of sympathizing with communist North Korea, a move that's become part of the hard right's playbook in South Korea, Yuh said.

Hundreds of protesters gathered in front of the country's Assembly in Seoul, calling for Yoon to resign or be impeached.

Under South Korea’s constitution, the president can declare martial law during “wartime, war-like situations or other comparable national emergency states” that require the use of military force to maintain peace and order. Yoon has been an unpopular leader since he was narrowly elected in 2022.

When martial law is declared, “special measures” can be employed to restrict the freedom of press, freedom of assembly and the power of courts. The constitution also states that the president must oblige when the 300-seat National Assembly demands the lifting of martial law with a majority vote.

On Tuesday, the 190 lawmakers who participated in the vote supported the lifting of martial law. Television footage showed soldiers, who had been stationed at parliament following the martial law order, leaving the National Assembly after the vote.

To Yuh, the assembly's rebuke showed why it's important for lawmakers to stand by their country before their political party.

"His own party denounced martial law," Yuh said. "There’s a divide in South Korea between the president and his political party. The president does not control his political party and that makes for a healthy democracy."

Contributing: Associated Press