South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol.
Seoul: South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday announced the imposition of ’emergency martial law’ in the country. He also accused the opposition of dominating Parliament, sympathizing with North Korea and destabilizing the government with anti-national activities. Hours after the President’s announcement, Parliament voted to ‘nullify’ the declaration. During the vote, National Assembly Speaker Woo Won Shik announced that lawmakers would “together with the people to defend democracy.” Wu asked police and military personnel to withdraw from the parliament complex.
Both the party and the opposition expressed protest
According to South Korea’s ‘Yonhap’ news agency, after Yoon’s announcement, the country’s military announced that parliament and other political gatherings that could create ‘confusion in society’ would be suspended. Making this announcement during his televised address, Yoon expressed his resolve to ‘eliminate pro-North Korea forces and safeguard the constitutional democratic system’. It is not yet clear what effect Yun’s move will have on the country’s governance and democracy. This step of Yun has been opposed by politicians from both the party and the opposition. At the same time, common people have also been seen taking to the streets and protesting.
Crowd of people protesting against the President’s decision outside the National Assembly of South Korea.
Yoon won by a slight margin in 2022
Yoon’s own conservative party leader Han Dong-hoon was among those protesting. Hoon described the President’s decision as ‘wrong’ and pledged to ‘work together with the people to stop it’. Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung called Yoon’s announcement ‘illegal and unconstitutional’. Let us tell you that Lee Jae-myung had lost to Yoon by a small margin in the presidential elections held in 2022. Recently, there has been a decline in Yun’s popularity in the country. Since assuming office in 2022, he has had to work hard to maintain his lead over the opposition.
Democratic Party called emergency meeting
Yun’s conservative People’s Power Party is at a standoff with the liberal opposition Democratic Party over next year’s budget bill. The President has also been rejecting demands for an independent investigation into alleged scams involving his wife and top officials. His rivals are constantly cornering him on this issue also. After Yun’s announcement, the Democratic Party has called an emergency meeting of its MPs. Meanwhile, after the President’s announcement, a huge crowd of people has been seen on the streets. A large number of people in the country are opposing the President’s move.
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