South Korea crisis live: President Yoon faces impeachment calls amid martial law outcry | South Korea

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol’s office said his declaration of martial law late on Tuesday was justified and within the framework of the constitution, Reuters reports.

It denied that the martial law forces prevented the MPs’ access to the parliament.

Yun reversed the order hours later after parliament rejected his attempt to ban political activity and censor the media.

Six South Korean opposition parties planned to introduce a bill early Wednesday afternoon calling for the impeachment of President Yoon Suk-yeol, Yonhap reported.

The vote on the bill could be held on December 6 or 7, Yonhap added.

President Yoon Suk-yeol, a conservative former prosecutor, was first elected in 2022. by a very small margin.

But since then, its popularity has plummeted, with positive ratings barely above 10%.

Like the Guardian Julian Borger writes, Yun’s sudden imposition of martial law seems like an act of desperation.

“Yun’s brief declaration of martial law appears to have been a desperate gamble in the face of low public approval ratings – with approval ratings barely above 10% – in the midst of a doctors’ strike and stiff political opposition, including increasingly his own People’s Power party, whose leader Han Dong Hun said the move was a “wrong move”.

More analysis from Julian on the events here:

There are already protests in Seoul, with South Koreans calling for the president to resign.

Protesters held placards reading: “Restore Democracy” and “Yun Resign.”

MPs and members of the opposition also gathered in front of the National Assembly.

“Leave President Yoon Suk Yeol” and “Investigate his act of rebellion immediately” are among other messages seen on the streets of Seoul today.

President Yun’s face on another protest poster outside the National Assembly.

As President Yun faces growing calls to resign, a coalition of lawmakers has threatened to remove him if he does not. They say they are planning a bill to that effect that will be voted on within 72 hours.

“Parliament should focus on immediately suspending the president to pass the impeachment bill as soon as possible,” Huang Un-ha, one of the lawmakers in the coalition, told reporters on Wednesday, as reported by Reuters.

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

Meanwhile, 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. The union, Reuters reported, has vowed to strike until Yoon resigns.

Becoming a democracy only in the late 1980s, military intervention in civil affairs remains a sensitive topic in South Korea.

Yun’s sudden declaration last night marked the country’s first imposition of martial law in more than four decades.

He is interested in the history of martial law in South Koreathen this piece is for you:

Thank you for joining our ongoing live coverage of the unfolding political turmoil South Korea following President Yoon Suk-yeol’s sudden and short-lived declaration of martial law overnight.

Here is a brief overview of the dramatic events.

• President Yun has faced growing calls to step down after declaring martial law in a surprise late-night address on Tuesday, a heavy-handed measure he said was necessary to protect the country’s liberal democracy from “anti-state forces” and “threats coming from North Korea”. Within hours, Yun backed down, saying troops would return to their barracks and the order would be lifted after a cabinet meeting.

• The main opposition Democratic Party has said it will seek to remove Yun if he refuses to resign immediately. Even Yun’s own aides suggested a “massive” resignation.

• Yun’s martial law order included a six-point decree that banned political activities and parties, “false propaganda,” strikes, and “gatherings that incite social unrest.” The order also placed all media outlets under martial law and ordered all medical staff, including striking doctors, to return to work within 48 hours.

• The move was met with loud condemnation and widespread opposition. Despite the deployment of helicopters on the roof of the parliament building, 190 lawmakers managed to enter the building and went on to vote unanimously to reject Yun’s declaration and call for martial law to be lifted. In the streets, hundreds protested and chanted for the president to be arrested.

• A two-thirds majority in the legislature is needed to successfully impeach Yun.

• Opposition parties together control 192 of the 300 seats in the national assembly, so they will need to be joined by lawmakers from Yun’s own party.

• It is the first time martial law has been declared in South Korea in more than four decades, alarming allies. The United States, which has nearly 30,000 troops in South Korea to defend it from the nuclear-armed North, initially expressed deep concern at the declaration, then relief that martial law had ended. UK Foreign Office Secretary for the Indo-Pacific, Catherine West, issued a statementcalling for a “peaceful resolution of the situation, in accordance with the law and the constitution of the Republic of Korea.”

• To many on the outside looking in, the sudden political chaos seems to have come out of nowhere. But in South Korea, Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Min-seok has warned in recent months that Yun is preparing to declare martial law. Korean analysts say concerns have grown since several key military positions related to defense, counterintelligence and intelligence on North Korea were filled by individuals who graduated from the same school as the president. Opposition figures such as Kim have suggested that these figures could play a critical role in imposing martial law in the event of unforeseen circumstances.