Critical day in South Korea: Impeachment vote for President Yoon

A vote will be held today for President Yoon Suk Yeol, whom opposition parties want removed from office due to his declaration of martial law. The approval of the motion will require support from the ruling party. The result in the National Assembly will determine the country's political future.

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Critical day in South Korea: Impeachment vote for President Yoon

In South Korea, the motion submitted to the National Assembly by opposition parties to remove President Yoon Suk Yeol from office following his unexpected declaration of martial law on the night of December 3 will be voted on today.

According to reports from the South Korean agency Yonhap, the session where the motion will be discussed in the National Assembly will begin at 17:00 local time (11:00 Turkish time).

The main opposition Democratic Party (DP) and 5 smaller opposition parties had submitted a motion to the parliament to remove the president from office on the grounds that Yoon's declaration of martial law was unconstitutional and illegal.

OPPOSITION VOTES ARE NOT SUFFICIENT

For the motion to be accepted, the affirmative vote of 200 members of parliament, which constitutes two-thirds of the total number of assembly members, is required. The opposition bloc, which holds 192 of the 300 seats in the National Assembly, needs the support of at least 8 deputies from the ruling People Power Party (PPP) to achieve the qualified majority.

It is not yet clear whether the opposition, whose ability to secure the ruling party's support for the decision is uncertain, will be able to pass the motion through the assembly.

Appearing in public for the first time today since the declaration of martial law, which was lifted shortly after by a parliamentary vote, Yoon apologized to the people of South Korea in a televised speech and stated that he left the decision regarding himself to the ruling party ahead of the impeachment vote to be held in the assembly.

HOW THE RULING PARTY WILL ACT IS UNCERTAIN

It remains uncertain how the PPP, of which Yoon is a member and which nominated him for the presidency, will act during the vote.

Party leader Han Dong-hoon, in a statement made after Yoon's apology speech, assessed that "the President is no longer in a position to effectively perform his duties and his resignation as soon as possible is inevitable."

Han also stated yesterday that it was understood that Yoon had given instructions for the arrest of prominent politicians during the declaration of martial law, and expressed that his powers should be suspended to prevent him from attempting such a "radical" action again.

Political observers interpret Han, who will not participate in the impeachment vote as he is not a member of parliament, as signaling support for the opposition's motion.

On the other hand, the PPP's parliamentary group continues its stance of trying to block the impeachment process by voting against the motion.

So far, one deputy from the ruling party, Cho Kyoung-tae, a PPP member who has served as a deputy for 6 terms, has announced that he will support the opposition's motion.

MARTIAL LAW DECLARATION IN SOUTH KOREA

President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law on the night of December 3 in a televised speech on the grounds of "opposition involvement in anti-state activities," but took a step back after the parliament lifted the decision in a vote and it was subsequently approved by the Cabinet.

Accusing the opposition of "preventing the government from functioning," Yoon had argued that martial law was "aimed at eliminating pro-North Korean forces and protecting the constitutional order of freedom."

Following the declaration of martial law, the Ministry of Defense had instructed commanders in the army to hold a meeting and called for them to be on alert. On the other hand, it was reported that soldiers assigned as "martial law troops" had entered the National Assembly.

The motion regarding the lifting of the martial law decision in the emergency session held in the National Assembly was accepted with the votes of 190 deputies. The Office of the National Assembly Speaker had announced that martial law became "null and void" after the vote.

Upon this, Yoon, who gathered the Cabinet, announced that he had ended martial law after the cabinet's approval.

Yoon had accepted the resignation of Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun, who had suggested he declare martial law, on December 5.

News Source: 12punto