South Korea’s parliament has voted to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol over his failed attempt to impose martial law, which sparked massive protests across the country.
President Yoon Suk Yeol was suspended after some members of his own People Power Party (PPP) voted with the opposition – though the decision still needs be ratified by the constitutional court.
Thousands of anti-Yoon protesters celebrated outside the National Assembly on December 14 after the impeachment motion passed, with the crowd singing as fireworks broke out overhead.
President Yoon has vowed to fight on and said he “will never give up”, describing the vote as a temporary pause to his presidency.
“I will take your criticism, praise, and support to the heart and do my best for the country until the end,” he added.
His defiant words are a marked change from his apologetic tone earlier this month over his short-lived martial law declaration.
Yoon Suk Yeol attempted to impose military rule after months of political deadlock, saying it was necessary to block supposed North Korean efforts to undermine his government – but the declaration was overturned after a matter of hours by lawmakers.
There has been strong public support for Yoon’s impeachment, with recent polls finding three-quarters of South Koreans wanted to see him go.
Following days of public pressure the PPP had decided to let its lawmakers vote on the motion, after an effort to impeach Yoon last week failed when its lawmakers boycotted the hearing.
On December 14, the impeachment motion reached the two thirds threshold needed to pass after 12 members of Yoon’s party voted in favour.
The constitutional court now has 180 days to rule on whether Yoon’s impeachment should be upheld or whether he can return to office. If it rules in favour of impeachment, an election for the next president must be called within 60 days.
Yoon Suk Yeol has been suspended while PM Han Duck-soo has taken over as acting president.
Han Duck-soo said his focus is to “stabilise the situation” and “bring back normalcy for the people”.
South Korea has faced nearly two weeks of chaos and uncertainty since Yoon’s short-lived martial law attempt on December 3.
He had cited threats from “anti-state forces” and North Korea but it soon became clear that his move had been spurred by his own domestic political troubles, not by external threats.
Hours later he reversed the order after 190 lawmakers voted it down, with many of them climbing fences and breaking barricades to get into the voting chamber.
Yoon later apologized but on December 12 he defended his actions, saying he had sought to protect the country’s democracy and vowed to “fight on until the end”.
The impeachment of a president is not unchartered territory for South Korea, which last removed former president Park Geun-hye through this process in 2016.
Yoon Suk Yeol – then a prosecutor – had led the investigation against Park Geun-hye, which ultimately resulted in her impeachment.
