Yoon should have apologized to the people: Hong

Hong Jang-won, former first deputy director of the National Intelligence Service and the third witness in the fifth hearing of President Yoon Suk Yeol’s impeachment trial on Tuesday, testified that Yoon called him on the night of the Dec. 3 martial law declaration and instructed him to arrest politicians.
Hong, disclosing that he was given a list of some 14 individuals to be arrested during the Dec. 3 operation through a phone call with former Defense Counterintelligence Commander Yeo In-hyung, told justices that he jotted down the names of the individuals during the call.
“But then I realized what this was all about, so I didn’t take a memo in the middle and stopped,” Hong said, elaborating that he later had to ask an aide what was said because he had scribbled down the names while on the phone at night, outside.
He later said during a hearing that he thought Yeo was "crazy" for giving him such a list.
In previous parliamentary hearings, Hong told lawmakers he received a phone call from Yoon instructing him to “round up (the politicians) and get rid of them.”
According to Hong, Yoon told him that “this is the chance to round them all up, clean it all up completely. The NIS will be given counterespionage authority, so support and assist the Defense Counterintelligence Command. Whether it’s funding or manpower, provide whatever is needed.”
Hong, an NIS veteran with 30 years of experience, said he was “worried” after receiving a call from Yoon that night.
“From my perspective, even though the military had already withdrawn (after midnight), it seemed that stability (in the military) had not been fully achieved. I was concerned about what might happen in the future. There was significant anxiety about the possibility of something happening. The events that unfolded in Yeouido at the National Assembly created a deep sense of unease, and the fact that only a few people knew about what happened made resolving the situation even more difficult,” Hong said.
Hong added that Yoon should have apologized to the people.
“The events that took place that night at the National Assembly were broadcast nationwide, so just because the martial law forces withdrew and martial law was lifted doesn’t mean that nothing happened. ... Even now, I believe that if President Yoon had sincerely apologized to the public and expressed his thoughts and feelings at the time, it would have been far more convincing to the people.”
Hong also indirectly confirmed a local media report that Yoon ordered his dismissal after he refused to comply, specifically mentioning a conversation with the NIS director on Dec. 6 regarding his dismissal.

Meanwhile, regarding the witnesses' testimonies, Yoon said things must be considered on the basis of "common sense."
"In reality, nothing actually happened, yet all this talk about giving or receiving orders feels like chasing the reflection of the moon on a lake.”
“As the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, I don’t want to argue over the testimonies of the officers. However, based on common sense, I believe one can clearly discern the true nature of the matter," he said.
The next hearing in Yoon's impeachment trial is set for Thursday.