South Korea’s SEOUL Members of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s ruling party departed parliament on Saturday before the scheduled vote, thwarting an attempt to remove him from office for his brief declaration of martial law.
After voting on a separate motion, the 192 opposition MPs were eight votes short of the two-thirds majority required for the impeachment motion to be successful, and members of the People Power Party (PPP) were yelled at and swore at as they departed in large numbers.
In the midst of seething public ire over Yoon’s confusing directive that threw the East Asian democracy and important U.S. ally into upheaval, opposition MPs had stated that they would revisit the impeachment resolution on Wednesday if it failed.
In a brief nationally televised speech earlier Saturday, Yoon expressed regret for his actions, stating that they were motivated by the urgency he felt as president but that they nevertheless led the public to feel anxious and inconvenienced.
He remarked, “I sincerely apologize to the citizens who were alarmed and I deeply regret this.”
After speaking for a little more than two minutes, Yoon bowed his head deeply in front of the cameras and said, “I will not avoid the legal and political responsibility regarding this declaration of martial law.”
In response to certain opposition MPs’ concerns, he stated that he would not impose martial law again and that his party would determine how state affairs would be run and how long he should remain in power.
Following the speech, PPP leader Han Dong-hoon told reporters that Yoon could no longer perform his regular presidential duties and called for his resignation.
Yoon’s opponent in the 2022 presidential election, Lee Jae-myung, the head of the liberal opposition Democratic Party, called the president’s speech “very disappointing.”
According to Lee, President Yoon’s remarks further heightened feelings of betrayal and were wholly out of step with public expectations.
Leaving the office early is the only option.
This week, Yoon’s impeachment proceedings were initiated by six opposition parties. Just short the two-thirds majority required for the resolution to pass, the opposition alliance controls 192 of the 300 seats in the unicameral assembly.
However, the conservative PPP also maintained its formal opposition to a bill that would designate a special prosecutor to look into claims of wrongdoing involving Yoon’s wife. Before PPP legislators exited the house on Saturday, that bill was narrowly defeated by a vote.
In contrast, opposition MPs and a large portion of the people are adamant that Yoon be removed from office. While smaller groups of demonstrators have come together in support of Yoon, larger audiences have demanded his removal.
After attempting to impose martial law, you cannot and should not apologize merely verbally. Following President Yoon Suk Yeol’s speech, Seoul resident Margie Kim stated that the only way for him to truly apologize is to step down immediately.
According to The Korea Times, Yoon’s approval rating dropped from 19% a week ago to 13% in a Gallup Korea poll issued on Friday.
The 50 million-person nation, which spent decades under military-authoritarian rule before transforming into a thriving democracy and the tenth-largest economy in the world, was left in chaos and fear as a result of Yoon’s illegal and unconstitutional declaration of martial law, according to Lee, the leader of the Democratic Party.
He stated on Friday that an unruly power is now destroying the democracy of this country, which was built on blood, sweat, and tears, and that our people have suffered severe injuries to their sense of pride and national honor.
Lee also raised concerns about the potential impact of the martial rule declaration on South Korea’s relations with the United States, pointing out that the unrest had forced the postponement of U.S.-South Korea Nuclear Consultative Group talks that were scheduled for Washington this week.
He claimed that both our diplomacy and our credibility had suffered greatly.
Officials from the Biden administration claimed they were not informed beforehand that Yoon would impose martial law. However, they have consistently underlined the unwavering nature of the U.S. relationship with South Korea, which houses about 30,000 American soldiers and is seen as a crucial bulwark against North Korea, China, and Russia.
State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said Thursday that the United States and South Korea have a connection that goes beyond any one president or administration on either side of the Pacific.
Yoon, a 63-year-old former chief prosecutor who assumed office in 2022, has not appeared in public since the martial emergency decree was lifted early Wednesday after MPs voted overwhelmingly to reject it and broke through a security barrier to enter the National Assembly building.
He has since accepted his defense minister Kim Yong-hyun’s resignation, stating that he accepts full responsibility for the incident. All top presidential secretaries and Yoon’s chief of staff are among the numerous other officials that have resigned.
Prosecutors and South Korean police are looking into allegations of treason and insurrection against Kim, Yoon, and Interior Minister Lee Sang-min. Kim and seven other active-duty military officers have also been suspended from duty and asked to have their travel abroad prohibited by the Ministry of National Defense.
The six hours between Yoon’s declaration of martial law at 10:30 p.m. on Tuesday and his lifting of the order at 4:30 a.m. on Wednesday were described by military officers and government officials as chaotic. Many of them claimed that news reports or Yoon’s unexpected TV speech were the sources of their knowledge of the martial law order, which was South Korea’s first since 1980.
During his speech, Yoon charged that the opposition-controlled parliament was stifling the administration by attempting to impeach several government officials and cutting vital funds from the national budget for the following year. Additionally, he charged that his opponents harbored sympathy for North Korea, the South’s isolated communist neighbor with nuclear weapons with which it is still nominally at war.
Following Yoon’s speech, martial law was declared, which restricted the media and outlawed any political action, including protests. Additionally, it mandated that the nation’s striking physicians report back to work within 48 hours.
Yoon ordered the arrest of important politicians, including Democratic Party leader Lee and Yoon’s own party leader Han, along with other opposition MPs, a journalist, a former Supreme Court justice, and a former Supreme Court chief justice, officials said Friday.
Regarding the accusations, Yoon’s office has remained silent.
Jennifer Jett reported from Hong Kong, and Stella Kim from Seoul.
Note: Every piece of content is rigorously reviewed by our team of experienced writers and editors to ensure its accuracy. Our writers use credible sources and adhere to strict fact-checking protocols to verify all claims and data before publication. If an error is identified, we promptly correct it and strive for transparency in all updates, feel free to reach out to us via email. We appreciate your trust and support!