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South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol faced mounting calls for his impeachment on Wednesday after his failed attempt to impose martial law sparked the country’s worst constitutional crisis in decades.
Opposition lawmakers called on him to resign or face impeachment proceedings after the parliamentary vote, while protesters against the 63-year-old former prosecutor held a rally in central Seoul on Wednesday morning.
The turmoil came after Yoon declared a state of emergency in an unscheduled national broadcast late Tuesday, saying he needed to purge South Korea of ​​”anti-state forces” and “normalize the country.”
But he he withdrew hours laterlifting the order after it was unanimously rejected by the opposition-controlled legislature. The soldiers sent to surround the parliament building were withdrawn.
South Korea’s main opposition, the Democratic Party, said Yoon’s declaration of martial law was a “grave violation of the constitution.”
“This represents a clear act of treason and is the perfect reason for his impeachment,” the statement said.
“(Yoon) will probably try again because his first attempt to issue a military ruling failed,” Lee Jae-myung, the party’s leader, told a rally at the parliament complex. “But we face a bigger risk where he can provoke North Korea and risk an armed conflict with North Korea by destabilizing the shared border.”
Yoon’s efforts to impose martial law — the country’s first since democracy was restored in the 1980s — came after months of tension with his rivals in parliament.
After a night of upheaval, South Korea’s financial authorities vowed to stabilize Asia’s fourth-largest economy with “unlimited” liquidity. The Bank of Korea said after an emergency meeting on Wednesday that it was “keeping all options open until markets stabilize.”
The won, which weakened sharply against the dollar after Yoon’s declaration of emergency, recovered.
The reference Kospi index fell almost 2 percent. Shares of Samsung Electronics, the largest company in the country, fell by 1.1 percent.
Yoon’s own conservative People Power party has called on the president to fire his defense minister, Kim Yong-hyun, who he believes proposed the declaration of martial law. Party leaders are debating whether Yoon should leave the party, according to state-run Yonhap News.
The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, the country’s leading umbrella labor group, has called for an indefinite strike until Yoon steps down.
Yoon’s withdrawal from trying to impose martial law was welcomed by the US, South Korea’s most important ally.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US was “closely following developments over the past 24 hours”.
“We welcome President Yoon’s announcement that he will rescind the order declaring a state of emergency,” Blinken said in a statement. “We still expect political disagreements to be resolved peacefully and in accordance with the rule of law.”
Any attempt to impeach Yoon would require two-thirds support from the 300-member National Assembly. The opposition parties have a total of 192 seats, so the bill could pass with the support of more than eight members of Yoon’s party.
In the event of an impeachment vote, Yoon would be immediately suspended from his presidential duties pending a final ruling by South Korea’s Constitutional Court. New elections must be held within 60 days after the president is removed from office or resigns. The prime minister would take over the duties of the acting president.
If lawmakers do not vote to impeach, there could be more demonstrations, said Choi Jin-bong, a professor of journalism and broadcasting at Sungkonghoe University. “Public protests are likely to grow, forcing them to vote for impeachment again,” he said.
