Stars Speak Out: South Korean Celebrities Criticize President Yoon’s Controversial Address

Following South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s recent national address, several figures from the entertainment industry have voiced their criticism.

On Thursday, actress Jung Young Joo took to Instagram, posting a screenshot of Yoon’s televised address and the sarcastic comment, “Impressive! Truly! Amazing!” Her ironic tone seemed to reflect her disapproval of the president’s statements.

MBC news anchor Lim Hyun Ju also joined the conversation on Instagram, questioning, “Can a two-hour event really be called an insurrection? Is deploying a few troops to maintain order now considered a riot?” She punctuated her post with a large question mark, emphasizing her disbelief.

Singer Lee Seung Yoon also expressed his discontent, commenting, “It’s hard to claim it was just a warning with nothing happening, without wondering how many people truly understood the sophistication of what they’re calling high-level governance.” He continued, “When they ask, Wasn’t it justified to impose martial law? Are we supposed to just nod in agreement? Absolutely not.”

Actor Seo Ha Joon posted a photo of himself holding a coffee cup in front of the live broadcast of the address, writing, “It’s really bitter since the morning.” Meanwhile, former news anchor Choi Hee shared a picture of a salad on her Instagram story, commenting, “Watching the news just killed my appetite.”

Earlier that morning, Yoon delivered a national address stating, “Over the past two and a half years, the opposition party has refused to recognize the president elected by the people and has continued to push for resignation and impeachment.” He added, “The time when troops were deployed was only about an hour or two.”

In defense of his actions, Yoon explained, “In a national crisis that threatened to paralyze the government, I exercised emergency martial law measures under my legal authority to protect the country and restore order. This was a high-level political decision that can only be overturned by the National Assembly.” He concluded, “I will stand with the people until the very end.”