South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol Faces Impeachment After Attempt To Impose Martial Law

Opposition parties in South Korea submitted a motion to impeach Yoon Suk Yeol, the president, after he was forced to end a martial law declaration across the country.

The impeachment motion was filed Wednesday and could be put to a vote by the end of the week.

What’s the process of President Yoon Suk Yeol?

More than two-thirds of the 300 members in the National Assembly will need to vote in favour of the impeachment for it to pass.

That means it needs at least 201 votes.

Once it has been approved, a trial will be held in front of the nine-member Constitutional Court.

Six of those members will need to vote in favour to sustain the impeachment.

What could happen to Yoon?

If the impeachment passes, Yoon will be stripped of his constitutional powers and removed from office.

Han Duck-soo, the South Korean prime minister, would take over his presidential responsibilities as the second in command in the government.

Owen Miller, Korea expert at the School of Oriental and African Studies, tells Sky News that he believes opposition parties will want to try Yoon in court if the impeachment is successful.

It’s “very likely” that South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will be impeached, an expert on Korea from the School of Oriental and African Studies tells Sky News.

Yoon is facing an impeachment motion over his shock attempt to impose martial law in the country yesterday, which he eventually reversed after a vote against the declaration by the National Assembly.

Speaking to presenter Gareth Barlow, Owen Miller says he believes the impeachment will more than likely succeed.

“Considering the shock of the situation, considering how far the current president gambled on this. I just can’t see him surviving. I just cannot see it happening,” he says.

“Lawmakers quite easily voted down the martial law declaration last night. They got that majority easily. I suspect that they will get the two-thirds majority for an impeachment.”

After the impeachment, Miller says he then “can’t see any other outcome” than the opposition Democratic Party winning a subsequent election in South Korea.

Asked what North Korea’s views will be on the developments in Seoul, Miller says Pyongyang will be “fairly happy to see South Korea being far more unstable than they are”.

There have been protests in Seoul Wednesday as people and politicians condemn Yoon Suk Yeol’s decision to declare martial law last night.

Those in attendance have signs calls for the president to step down.

Another reads, “No to war and martial law, overthrow dictator Yoon Suk Yeol”.

Also Read: South Korea President Backs Down From Martial Law Order After MPs Vote to Block It

The United States is “encouraged by the resilience of Korean democracy”, its ambassador to South Korea tells the country’s Yonhap news agency.

“We were concerned about the events of last night… The United States supports that democracy and the people of Korea to resolve issues peacefully, democratically and constitutionally,” Philip Goldberg says.

There were concerns last night that North Korea could take advantage of chaos in the South to escalate tensions, Goldberg adds.

He says the US’s commitment to South Korea is “unwavering”, and the US is “always on alert and prepared”.

In Busan, South Korea’s second biggest city, activists are planning to hold a rally every day for the next week, Yonhap news agency reports.

About 1,000 citizens are expected to attend a candlelight rally this evening in Gwangju, a city in the south-western corner of the country.

And protesters in the south-eastern cities of Daegu and Pohang, and the southern Jeju Island, are planning similar rallies in the afternoon.

An indefinite general strike has also begun, organised by South Korea’s main labour union.