A South Korean party spokeswoman seen grappling with a rifle-wielding soldier in a video that went viral as a symbol of defiance against martial law on Thursday insisted that she was not especially brave.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol was forced to abandon his declaration of martial law this week after 190 lawmakers defied a contingent of soldiers in helmets and body armor and voted unanimously to reject it.
Footage of the lawmakers’ aides tussling with the troops to prevent the soldiers entering the main hall has become a symbol of public rejection of the attempt to impose military rule.
Photo: Reuters
Images went viral showing An Gwi-ryeong, 35, a former TV anchor who serves as spokesperson for the opposition Democratic Party, grappling with a soldier and grabbing hold of his gun.
One video was viewed more than 1.3 million times on YouTube as of yesterday evening.
“My only thought was that I just needed to stop them. I pushed them away, shook them off, and did everything I could,” she said on Thursday.
“A lot of people were fighting against martial law troops so I just thought I also had to stop them,” she added.
As lawmakers were gathered on Tuesday, their aides blocked entrances with furniture, formed human chains and sprayed troops with fire extinguishers.
Just two-and-a-half hours after the president declared martial law, 190 lawmakers had made their way to the parliament and unanimously voted to block it.
“Let go! Don’t you feel the shame?” Ahn can be seen shouting at the soldier in the clip. After she grabs his rifle, the soldier steps back.
Asked if she knew it would gain that much attention, she said: “There were many people braver than me who stood up to the martial law troops.”
“There were people who even managed to stop armored vehicles outside. So, I don’t think my actions were particularly special,” she added.
The commander of the martial law troops on Thursday said he had no intention to wield firearms against the public. South Korean Vice-Defense Minister Kim Seon-ho said no live ammunition was provided to the troops.
South Korean opposition lawmakers plan to vote this weekend to impeach the president.
“I think that the people have already psychologically impeached President Yoon Suk-yeol,” Ahn said.
“Who could trust a president declaring martial law almost like a child playing games or entrust the nation to such leadership?” she added.
OPTIMISTIC: A Philippine Air Force spokeswoman said the military believed the crew were safe and were hopeful that they and the jet would be recovered A Philippine Air Force FA-50 jet and its two-person crew are missing after flying in support of ground forces fighting communist rebels in the southern Mindanao region, a military official said yesterday. Philippine Air Force spokeswoman Colonel Consuelo Castillo said the jet was flying “over land” on the way to its target area when it went missing during a “tactical night operation in support of our ground troops.” While she declined to provide mission specifics, Philippine Army spokesman Colonel Louie Dema-ala confirmed that the missing FA-50 was part of a squadron sent “to provide air support” to troops fighting communist rebels in
PROBE: Last week, Romanian prosecutors launched a criminal investigation against presidential candidate Calin Georgescu accusing him of supporting fascist groups Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Romania’s capital on Saturday in the latest anti-government demonstration by far-right groups after a top court canceled a presidential election in the EU country last year. Protesters converged in front of the government building in Bucharest, waving Romania’s tricolor flags and chanting slogans such as “down with the government” and “thieves.” Many expressed support for Calin Georgescu, who emerged as the frontrunner in December’s canceled election, and demanded they be resumed from the second round. George Simion, the leader of the far-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians (AUR), which organized the protest,
ECONOMIC DISTORTION? The US commerce secretary’s remarks echoed Elon Musk’s arguments that spending by the government does not create value for the economy US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick on Sunday said that government spending could be separated from GDP reports, in response to questions about whether the spending cuts pushed by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency could possibly cause an economic downturn. “You know that governments historically have messed with GDP,” Lutnick said on Fox News Channel’s Sunday Morning Futures. “They count government spending as part of GDP. So I’m going to separate those two and make it transparent.” Doing so could potentially complicate or distort a fundamental measure of the US economy’s health. Government spending is traditionally included in the GDP because
Two daughters of an Argentine mountaineer who died on an icy peak 40 years ago have retrieved his backpack from the spot — finding camera film inside that allowed them a glimpse of some of his final experiences. Guillermo Vieiro was 44 when he died in 1985 — as did his climbing partner — while descending Argentina’s Tupungato lava dome, one of the highest peaks in the Americas. Last year, his backpack was spotted on a slope by mountaineer Gabriela Cavallaro, who examined it and contacted Vieiro’s daughters Guadalupe, 40, and Azul, 44. Last month, the three set out with four other guides
RSS