South Korean President Yoon Suk-yul avoided an attempt led by the opposition to impeach him for imposing martial law for a short period, as most ruling party deputies boycotted a parliamentary vote on Saturday to deprive him of the two-thirds majority needed to suspend his presidential powers.
It is expected that canceling this proposal will intensify public protests demanding Yoon’s dismissal and deepen political chaos in South Korea, as an opinion poll indicates that a majority of South Koreans support the impeachment of the president. Yoon’s declaration of martial law has drawn criticism from his ruling conservative People Power Party, but he is also determined to oppose Yoon’s impeachment, apparently because he fears losing the presidency to the liberals.
After the motion failed, members of the main opposition Liberal Democratic Party rallied inside the National Assembly, chanting slogans demanding Yoon’s impeachment or resignation. Party bloc leader Park Chan-dae said he would soon prepare for a new impeachment motion.
Party leader Lee Jae-myung said: “We will definitely dismiss Yoon Suk-yeol, who represents the greatest danger to the Republic of Korea.” “We will definitely get this country back to normal before Christmas Day or the end of the year.”
Although he survived the impeachment attempt, many experts worry that Yoon will not be able to serve out the remaining two and a half years in office. They say some ruling party lawmakers may eventually join opposition parties’ efforts to impeach Yoon if public demands for him grow.
Protests against Yoon are growing
People gather during a rally organized by conservative groups that support South Korean President Yoon Suk-yul and condemn opposition party lawmakers who are calling for the president’s impeachment, in Seoul, South Korea, Saturday, December 7, 2024, following the president’s short-lived military rule declaration. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man).
GM
On Saturday, tens of thousands of people gathered in several streets leading to the headquarters of the National Assembly, waving banners, chanting slogans and dancing. Protesters also gathered in front of the Pakistan People’s Party headquarters near the Assembly, chanting angrily demanding that lawmakers vote to impeach Yoon. A smaller crowd of Yoon’s supporters, which appeared to still be in the thousands, gathered in separate streets in Seoul, denouncing the attempt to impeach him which they considered unconstitutional.
Get breaking national news
For news affecting Canada and around the world, sign up to get breaking news alerts delivered to you right as they happen.
Yoon’s removal would require the support of two-thirds of the National Assembly, or 200 of its 300 members. The Democratic Party and five other small opposition parties, which put forward the motion, have a combined 192 seats. But only three lawmakers from the Pakistan People’s Party participated in the vote. The proposal was canceled without counting the votes because the number of votes did not reach 200.
National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik described the result as “extremely unfortunate” and an embarrassing moment for democracy in the country that the world is watching closely.
“The failure to hold a qualified vote on this issue means that we have not even been able to exercise the democratic procedure to decide on a crucial national issue,” he said.
It is possible that the opposition parties will submit a new proposal to remove the president after the opening of a new parliamentary session next Wednesday.
If Yoon is impeached, his powers will be suspended until the Constitutional Court decides whether to remove him from office. If he is impeached, an election must be held to replace him within 60 days.
Yoon apologizes for the disturbance
Earlier on Saturday, Yoon issued a public apology over the martial law decree, saying he would not shirk legal or political responsibility for the declaration and promising not to make another attempt to impose martial law. He said he would leave it to his party to chart a course through the country’s political turmoil, “including matters related to my term in office.”
“Declaring this martial law was out of my desperation. But while implementing it, it caused anxiety and inconvenience to the public. I feel very sorry for it and truly apologize to the people who must have been greatly shocked,” Yoon said.
Since taking office in 2022, Yoon has struggled to push his agenda through the opposition-controlled parliament and has faced low approval ratings amid scandals involving him and his wife. In announcing martial law on Tuesday evening, Yoon described Parliament as a “den of criminals” obstructing state affairs and vowed to eliminate “North Korea’s shameless henchmen and anti-state forces.”
The unrest caused by Yoon’s bizarre and ill-advised stunt has paralyzed politics in South Korea and sparked unease among key diplomatic partners such as the United States and Japan.
Tuesday night saw special forces surround the parliament building and military helicopters flew over it, but the army withdrew after the National Assembly voted unanimously to repeal the decree, forcing Yoon to lift it before dawn on Wednesday. The declaration of martial law was the first of its kind in more than 40 years in South Korea. Eighteen ruling party lawmakers voted to reject Yoon’s martial law decree along with opposition lawmakers. The PPP later decided to oppose Yoon’s impeachment motion.
Yoon’s speech sparked speculation that he and his party might push for a constitutional amendment to shorten his term, rather than accept impeachment, as a way to ease public anger over the marriage law and facilitate Yoon’s early exit from office.
Lee told reporters that Yoon’s speech was “extremely disappointing” and that the only way forward was for him to immediately resign or be removed. His party described Yoon’s martial law as “unconstitutional, a rebellion or an illegal coup.”
Lawmakers on Saturday voted for the first time on a bill to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate allegations of stock price manipulation surrounding Yoon’s wife. Some lawmakers from Yoon’s party were seen leaving the hall after that vote, sparking angry shouts from opposition lawmakers.
Yoon is accused of ordering the arrest of politicians
On Friday, Pakistan People’s Party Chairman Han Dong-hoon, who has criticized Yoon’s martial law declaration, said he received intelligence that during the short period of martial law, Yoon ordered the country’s defense counterintelligence chief to arrest and detain unspecified key politicians based on charges “Counterespionage.” “State activities.”
Hong Jang-won, first deputy director of South Korea’s National Intelligence Service, told lawmakers in a closed news conference on Friday that Yoon had ordered him to assist the defense counterintelligence unit in arresting key politicians. The politicians targeted include Han and Lee Woo, according to Kim Byung-ki, one of the lawmakers who attended the meeting.
The Ministry of Defense announced on Friday that it had suspended three military commanders, including the head of the defense counterintelligence unit, due to their involvement in implementing martial law.
Deputy Defense Minister Kim Seon-ho told Parliament that Defense Minister Kim Jong-hyun ordered the deployment of troops to the National Assembly after Yoon imposed martial law. Opposition parties accused Kim of recommending Yoon impose martial law.
Kim resigned on Thursday, and prosecutors imposed a ban on him traveling abroad.
