Field commanders and soldiers prevented bloodshed

Special Warfare Commander Kwak Jong-geun, who participated in the 12/3 martial law, appeared at the National Assembly on Tuesday and revealed that he received instructions from President Yoon Suk Yeol to “quickly break down the (National Assembly) door and drag out the National Assembly members.” The presidential office had been explaining that “we did not block (the National Assembly members from entering the National Assembly main chamber) so that the National Assembly could decide whether to approve (martial law).” Still, this explanation has been revealed to be false.

If armed special forces had attempted to forcefully secure the members of the National Assembly that day, a bloody clash could have occurred. Those who prevented this were the field commanders and soldiers who refused the illegal orders from their superiors. Commander Kwak testified that the field commanders who received the orders clearly said, ‘No.’ The Armed Forces Counterintelligence Command also formed a 40-person National Assembly suppression team. Still, it is said that the unit members intentionally stalled for time by drinking coffee and eating ramen at a convenience store on their way to the National Assembly and ultimately did not enter the National Assembly.

The working-level commanders also refused the order to seize the National Election Commission (NEC) computer room, which was handed down to the Counterintelligence Command. Counterintelligence Commander Yeo In-hyung instructed control of the computer room, stating, “It is the president’s order,” but seven legal officers, including colonels and commissioned officers, refused to comply. None of the approximately 100 personnel from the four teams dispatched to the NEC entered the building. A counterintelligence command official remarked, “Our agents are not trash who would carry out illegal orders.”

Some have suggested that martial law could have succeeded if the military’s command and control system had functioned flawlessly. However, the field commanders and soldiers recognized unjust orders and had the courage to resist them, ultimately buying time for the National Assembly to pass a resolution lifting martial law and preventing a constitutional crisis. The military, at times, proves to be a patriotic force that defies illegality.