Protesters march to the presidential office after a candlelight vigil against South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol in Seoul, South Korea, on Dec. 5.Ahn Young-joon/The Associated Press
South Korean lawmakers from across the political spectrum were holding emergency meetings early Friday, as President Yoon Suk Yeol’s own party warned his powers must be curtailed to prevent potential “extreme actions.”
According to the Yonhap News Agency, members of the opposition Democratic Party were on high alert after receiving “many reports” of another move by Mr. Yoon to enact martial law. He did so earlier this week, but was quickly thwarted.
In a surprise address Tuesday, Mr. Yoon said the move was necessary “to protect liberal democracy” against “anti-state forces.” After dramatic scenes that night, lawmakers managed to bypass a large police and military presence to gather at the National Assembly and vote to overturn Mr. Yoon’s order.
Since then, the opposition has been demanding his impeachment, with a vote scheduled to be held Saturday evening. Mr. Yoon’s People Power Party, which joined other lawmakers in voting against martial law, had nevertheless suggested it would oppose his removal.
However, on Friday, People Power leader Han Dong-hoon said Mr. Yoon’s powers had to be curtailed, and called an emergency meeting of his colleagues at the National Assembly.
Mr. Han said he had received intelligence Mr. Yoon had attempted to use troops to arrest and detain major politicians during the brief period of martial law, and that there continues to be a “significant risk of extreme actions” from the President.
“I said yesterday that I would try not to pass this impeachment in order to prevent damage to the people and supporters caused by the unprepared chaos, but I believe that President Yoon Suk Yeol’s immediate suspension of office is necessary to protect the Republic of Korea and its people in light of the newly revealed facts,” Mr. Han said.
A senior member of the South Korean military, special warfare commander Kwak Jong-geun, said Friday he would refuse to implement any new order for martial law. The Joint Chiefs of Staff, which oversees the military, also said there was no reason to worry about a second attempt, according to multiple Korean media reports.
South Korea's ruling People Power Party leader Han Dong-hun speaks during a meeting of the party's leadership at the National Assembly in Seoul, South Korea, on Dec. 6.Kim Ju-hyung/The Associated Press
With ruling and opposition party lawmakers gathered at the Assembly, there was nothing to stop them moving ahead with an early vote to impeach Mr. Yoon on Friday.
If the vote is successful, Mr. Yoon will be suspended and the Prime Minister will take over as interim president while his case is referred to the country’s Constitutional Court. Six of nine judges on the court must rule in favour of Mr. Yoon’s impeachment, in which case he will be removed and elections held for a new president within 60 days.
Should impeachment fail, the Democratic Party has said it would also pursue treason charges against Mr. Yoon.
Yoon Suk Yeol declared, then rescinded, martial law in South Korea. What now? The situation so far
South Korean police already opened an investigation into such a case this week, against not only the President, but also Army Chief of Staff General Park An-su, who was named martial law commander in Mr. Yoon’s Tuesday announcement, Interior Minister Lee Sang-min and Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun, who resigned on Wednesday after claiming responsibility for the martial law edict.
Multiple senior government figures have sought to cast blame on Mr. Kim, who was also hit with a travel ban Thursday, for the political chaos unleashed this week.
Vice-Defence Minister Kim Seon-ho said he was not aware of the martial law order until Mr. Yoon declared it.
“I have fundamentally opposed the mobilization of military forces under martial law and have expressed negative opinions about it,” he told lawmakers Thursday, adding it was Mr. Kim who ordered the deployment of troops to parliament.
Moon Chung-in, a professor at Yonsei University and former special adviser to former president Moon Jae-in, said the former defence minister was “an important accomplice but he’s not the main agent.”
“You cannot make Kim Yong-hyun a scapegoat and leave Yoon Suk Yeol alone; Koreans are smarter than that,” he added. “The President is the main actor.”
Protesters marched through Seoul for the second night in a row Thursday to demand Mr. Yoon’s immediate removal, with more and larger rallies planned for the weekend in the lead-up to Saturday’s vote.
With reports from Reuters and the Associated Press.
A South Korean party spokesperson who grabbed a soldier's gun told Reuters she's not that special, after footage of her actions went viral as a symbol of defiance against martial law.
Reuters