Late into the night of December 3rd, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol declared martial law. Through martial law, the military overhauls civilian government and can impose curfews, control the media, and detain individuals without due process. Within 2 and a half hours of Yoon’s initial declaration, however, the decision was unanimously reversed by the 190 out of 300 present National Assembly members.
“I declare martial law to eradicate pro-North Korean forces and protect the free constitutional order,” said Yoon in a broadcasted announcement. The president claimed “pro-North, anti-state forces [were] seeking to overthrow the system.” He believes the opposing Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) abuses its majority in the National Assembly to stymie the budget and impeach government officials. Since Yoon was elected in 2022, the party has motioned to impeach 22 different people.
Nearly the entirety of Yoon’s supporters within his conservative party—the People Power Party, or PPP—shamed him for his declaration. The party’s leader, Han Dong-hoon, attacked Yoon: “This is an unlawful and unconstitutional declaration of martial law. The Republic of Korea is a free democracy, and we will protect our democracy with the people” [translation by CSIS.org]. According to the local press, Yoon’s cabinet members all strongly advised against the action, but that the president proceeded in spite of them. The next day, on December 4, all of Yoon’s cabinet members tendered their resignation—following a tradition of accepting responsibility for the current crises.
The first public hearing to decide the future of Yoon’s presidency was held on December 27th. That day, the parliament impeached and suspended Yoon.
Later, after Yoon failed to appear for questioning around undergoing criminal investigations, police swarmed Yoon’s residence but failed to arrest him.
Sources:
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0lgw1pw5zpo
https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-global/yoon-impeachment-south-korea-9728313
https://thediplomat.com/2024/12/south-korean-president-declares-martial-law
https://www.csis.org/analysis/yoon-declares-martial-law-south-korea