Motion to impeach South Korean President Yoon fails after leader imposes martial law

7 December 2024, 12:51 | Updated: 7 December 2024, 12:53

A push to impeach South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol fell through on Saturday following a boycott of the vote by the conservative governing party.

The vote, which took place on Saturday morning UK time, saw MPs decide whether embattled President Yoon Suk Yeol should remain as South Korea's leader over his decision to impose martial law.

All but three MPs of South Korea's ruling party left parliament ahead of a vote.

Impeaching Mr Yoon required support from two-thirds of the National Assembly, or 200 of its 300 members.

During the count, crowd could be heard chanting "impeach impeach".

The defeat of the motion is expected to intensify public protests calling for Mr Yoon's ousting and deepen political chaos in South Korea, with a survey suggesting a majority of South Koreans support the president's impeachment.

Mr Yoon's martial law declaration drew criticism from his own ruling conservative party, but it is also determined to oppose his impeachment apparently because it fears losing the presidency to liberals.

The opposition parties who brought the impeachment motion had 192 seats, but only three politicians from PPP participated in the vote.

The motion was scrapped without ballot counting because the number of votes did not reach 200.

It follows six opposition groups putting forward motions to impeach President Yoon.

The president attempted to impose martial law on Tuesday, throwing the country into turmoil, citing North Korea's communist forces and to eliminate ‘anti-State elements’ for the move.

But less than two hours after his declaration, MPs defied the order to gather outside the national assembly.

The state of imposing martial law was eventually overturned by the president as crowds of protestors took to the streets.

It follows weeks of political impasse in the country.

Members of the president's own party were seen to declare the decision to impose martial law unlawful, with the South Korean cabinet lifting the measures overnight after officials in both major parties called for it to end.

Many in the country, including MPs from his own party, still don't understand why the order was made, with one MP labelling the move "impulsive".

Opposition MPs were seen to crawl through fences and over barriers into parliament to vote to overturn the order.

The motion will still need to be debated before going to a vote, possibly later this week.

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South Korea's Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and other top officials are due to hold an emergency meeting early on Wednesday (at 14:00 local time).

President Yoon Suk Yeol said he would lift the measures in a television address on Tuesday evening.

In a national address, Yoon Suk Yeol backtracked, saying: "I have accepted decision made by the National Assembly to dissolve and lift the martial law.

"The cabinet lifted the law shortly after as the South Korean military disbanded the martial law command.

Announcing martial law earlier in the day, the president said it was necessary to protect the country from North Korea's communist forces and to eliminate ‘anti-State elements’.

Joon Hyung Kim, an opposition MP, spoke to the BBC News channel a little earlier, explaining how the martial law order caught the country by "total surprise".

It comes as an opposition MP told the BBC: "There was a rumour, but we never believed it - [I was] really shocked," he said, explaining how he immediately rushed to the National Assembly building.

"[The police] blocked me, I wrestled a lot... but finally I got through."

"It was very impulsive. Maybe he's not in his right mind.

"I think this is the end of his presidency... the remaining [question] is how and when it will end."

The martial law announcement A line of police officers had been seen guarding the entrance gate to the parliament building and clashing with protesters.

Videos shared online showed soldiers looking to keep demonstrators out of the building and police buses blocking its entrance.

Protesters were heard chanting “no to martial law”, "strike down dictatorship" and "open the gate".

Since taking office in 2022, Mr Yoon has struggled and his approval rating has dipped in recent months.

Mr Yoon's conservative People Power Party had been locked in an impasse with the liberal opposition Democratic Party over the country's budget for next year.

He has also dismissed calls for independent investigations into scandals involving his wife and top officials - drawing quick, strong rebukes from his political rivals.

The Democratic Party reportedly called an emergency meeting of its legislators following Mr Yoon's announcement.