Defending his shock decision to declare martial law last week, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday attacked his political opponents as “anti-state forces” and called for an Election Commission investigation into civilian rule. It was necessary to suspend the Internet, which had been “hacked”. “By North Korea. Mr Yun said his short-term martial law order was a legal move to protect democracy.
The president’s comments came as the leader of his own People’s Power Party (PPP) said Mr Yun showed no signs of resigning and should be impeached.
Mr Yoon, who may face a second impeachment vote in parliament on Saturday, vowed to fight “until the last minute”. This will be the second impeachment vote against the President, with the first impeachment a week earlier failing as a majority of the ruling party boycotted the vote.
“I apologize again to those who may have been surprised and concerned by martial law,” he said in a lengthy televised address.
Trying to justify his move to declare emergency rule in the first place, the President said that “criminal groups” that have paralyzed state affairs and disrupted the rule of law must be brought down by the government at all costs. Must be prevented from being captured.
“Please trust my loyalty to the people,” he said. He said South Korea’s National Election Commission was hacked by North Korea last year, but the independent agency refused to cooperate in investigating and inspecting its systems to protect its integrity.
Mr Yoon says the refusal was enough to raise questions about the integrity of the April 2024 election and prompt him to declare martial law.
The president’s People Power Party suffered a crushing defeat in the April election, giving the main opposition Democratic Party overwhelming control of the single-chamber assembly.
“The National Assembly, dominated by the big opposition party, has become a monster that destroys the constitutional order of liberal democracy,” Mr. Yoon said in a televised address.
But, he said, he “will not avoid legal and political responsibility regarding the declaration of martial law”.
criminal investigation against the president
The South Korean president is under criminal investigation for alleged rebellion over his failed Dec. 3 martial law declaration, which sparked the biggest political crisis in Asia’s fourth-largest economy in decades. Lawmakers broke through a police cordon, jumped some fences, and entered the country’s parliament and demanded the president revoke the emergency order within hours of the announcement.
The investigation into last week’s turmoil has intensified, with police attempting to raid the president’s office on Wednesday. He is also banned from traveling abroad as part of a “rebellion” investigation into his inner circle over last week’s dramatic events that stunned South Korea’s allies.
The former interior minister and general in charge of martial law operations has also been barred from traveling abroad. Meanwhile, prosecutors have arrested former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun, who is accused of suggesting to Mr. Yoon that he impose martial law. Two top law informant officers have also been detained as part of the ongoing investigation.
Meanwhile, the main opposition Democratic Party has warned that it will file a legal complaint of rebellion against the president’s staff and security personnel if they continue to obstruct law enforcement. The opposition is also introducing another impeachment motion against the president on Saturday, but it needs to vote with eight members of the PPP to remove Mr Yoon from office.
The president’s party, which had previously supported him during the impeachment vote, said it would support Saturday’s motion because Mr Yoon has not tendered his resignation because he “had to seize power”.
Just before Yoon’s televised address, PPP leader Han Dong-hoon said that Yoon must be stripped from power and the only way to accomplish this is for the party to support the impeachment bill.
