On the 8th, cameras captured an unusual sequence: President Lee Jae-myung, the ruling party leader and the National Assembly speaker each broke down in tears during official appearances, in that order.
President Lee became emotional while attending a Parents' Day ceremony at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Jung-gu, Seoul. After pinning a red carnation on the chest of a bereaved parent of a fallen public servant and continuing his remarks, he was overcome with feeling.
Families of firefighters who died in recent blazes were present: Fire Sgt. Kim Su-gwang and Fire Officer Park Su-hoon, who perished in the Mungyeong fire in North Gyeongsang; Fire Sgt. Im Seong-cheol, who died in a warehouse fire in Jeju; and Fire Officer Lee Ho-hyun, who died in the Gangneung fire in Gangwon.
President Lee handed flowers to those families and took the parents' hands. First Lady Kim Hye-kyung also drew attention when she embraced a grieving mother, her eyes visibly reddened.
Later in his remarks, President Lee said, \"The bereaved families must be heartbroken. I offer my condolences,\" and added, \"As I handed them the carnations, I suddenly found myself in tears.\"
He went on, \"On Parents' Day, there are people who ache for family members they can no longer see,\" then broke off, overcome with emotion. Attendees responded with supportive applause.
Jeong Cheong-rae, leader of the Democratic Party, became tearful after trying a milk-delivery experience in Songpa-gu, Seoul and then presiding over an on-site supreme council meeting. He was referring to the second comprehensive special investigation team's field inspection of a detention site on Yeonpyeong Island listed in the so-called Noh Sang-won notebook.
Jeong raised his voice, saying, \"Doesn't that suggest there were as many as 18 places with iron cages capable of holding 500 people?\" \"It chills me to the bone, and I am filled with rage,\" he added.
He continued, \"If martial law had succeeded, President Lee Jae-myung and I might have been imprisoned there. The terrifying image of possibly ending up as bait in the West Sea returned like a nightmare.\"
During his remarks, Jeong muttered, \"Ah, I shouldn't be doing this,\" and choked up. Nearby, Democratic Party Seoul mayoral candidate Jeong Won-oh handed him a handkerchief to wipe his tears.
National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik wiped his eyes in the plenary chamber that afternoon as he announced the adjournment of the session.
Soon after, Speaker Woo abandoned plans to reintroduce a constitutional amendment that had failed the previous day for lack of a quorum, after the People Power Party signaled it would oppose the move with filibusters.
He said, \"I will not put the amendment on the agenda,\" then delivered about 10 minutes of pointed criticism directed at the People Power Party.
He went on, \"The urgency and public demand for constitutional reform are clear, and there were no contentious issues—so there was no legitimate reason to oppose it—yet we failed to even open the door to revision. I cannot help but express strong regret that the People Power Party sank the amendment through partisan maneuvering and baseless claims.\"
Visibly seething, Speaker Woo finally wiped the tears running beneath his glasses.
Meanwhile, the three displays of emotion were broadcast live across numerous YouTube channels and television networks that day.
