South Korean President Faces Impeachment Calls Amid Protest

South Korean lawmakers on Wednesday called on President Yoon Suk Yeol to resign or face impeachment after he declared martial law only to reverse the move hours later, triggering a political crisis in Asia’s fourth-largest economy.

The surprise declaration late on Tuesday ignited a standoff with parliament which rejected his attempt to ban political activity and censor the media, as armed troops forced their way into the National Assembly building in Seoul.

The main opposition Democratic Party called for Yoon, who has been in office since 2022, to resign or face impeachment.

“It was clearly revealed to the entire nation that President Yoon could no longer run the country normally. He should step down,” senior DP member of parliament Park Chan-dae said in a statement.

Six South Korean opposition parties said they would submit Yoon’s impeachment bill on Wednesday, the Democratic Party said in a message to reporters, with voting to take place on Friday or Saturday.

The leader of Yoon’s ruling People Power Party called for Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun to be fired and the entire cabinet to resign.

Yoon told the nation in a TV address late on Tuesday that martial law was needed to defend the country from nuclear-armed North Korea and pro-North anti-state forces, and protect its free constitutional order, although he cited no specific threats.

Chaotic scenes ensued as troops tried to seize control of the parliament building, parliamentary aides sprayed fire extinguishers to push them back, and protesters scuffled with police outside.

But lawmakers defied the security cordon and within hours of the declaration, South Korea’s parliament, with 190 of its  300 members present, unanimously passed a motion requiring martial law be lifted, including all 18 members present from Yoon’s party. The president then rescinded the declaration.

Protesters outside the National Assembly shouted and clapped. “We won!” they chanted, and one demonstrator banged on a drum.

More protests are expected on Wednesday with South Korea’s largest union coalition, the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, planning to hold a rally in Seoul and vowing to strike until Yoon resigns.

The National Assembly can impeach the president if more than two-thirds of lawmakers vote for it. A trial is then held by the constitutional court, which can confirm it with a vote by six of the nine justices.

Yoon’s party controls 108 seats in the 300-member legislature.
If Yoon resigned or was removed from office, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo would fill in as leader until a new election was held within 60 days.

Reuters/Ejiofor Ezeifeoma