Pardon the paraphrase of a line from Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure. It was quite apt however, so I purloined it.
Starting Tuesday night South Korean President, Yoon Suk Yeol, declared martial law and suspended the National Assembly. It was the first time martial law has been declared in that country since 1980. Yoon, who was elected in 2022, is embroiled in several scandals and is deeply unpopular with the electorate in South Korea.
He stated his reasons for the declaration accusing the opposition party of plotting “insurgency” and “trying to overthrow the free democracy.” In a televised national address Yoon labeled the opposition’s actions as “clear anti-state behavior aimed at inciting rebellion.” He further claimed these acts have “paralyzed state affairs and turned the National Assembly into a den of criminals.”
Chief of Staff for the ROK, Park An-su, was declared commander for the incident issued a declaration that bans political meetings, strikes, and demonstrations. It places the media under government control, suspends the need for arrest warrants, and subjects civilians to military law.
https://twitter.com/clashreport/status/1863955273980772862
Martial law didn’t last long however. Around 6 hours in fact. The South Korean Constitution allows a majority vote of the National Assembly to void a martial law declaration. National Assembly lawmakers gathered enough votes for a quorum and voted unanimously to overturn the declaration.
At this point Yoon seemed to realize he didn’t have the support needed, and issued a statement ending martial law. It seems he ended hios political career at the same time.
Lawmakers on both sides are now calling for his impeachment. A successful impeachment requires a 2/3rds vote by the National Assembly and 6 of the 9 supreme court justices.
South Korea’s largest union, the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, has issued a general strike until Yoon resigns. The union represents millions of Korean workers across a wide spectrum of jobs.
It is unclear, especially to this editor, what Yoon was attempting to accomplish with this declaration. It had to be clear to him and his advisors that the opposition, which controls the National Assembly, had the votes to void it. He also had to know that at least some of his own party would – and did, most notably Han Dong-hoon the party leader – come out against it. It now appears that Yoon will join in a longstanding tradition in the ROK a non-peaceful removal. Only one ROK president has ever left office without being harmed in some way.
- 1. Syngman Rhee (1948–1960) – Overthrown.
- 2. Yun Bo-seon (1960–1962) – Overthrown.
- 3. Park Chung-hee (1962–1979) – Assassinated.
- 4. Choi Kyu-hah (1979–1980) – Removed by a military coup.
- 5. Chun Doo-hwan (1981–1988) – Sentenced to death after his presidency.
- 6. Roh Tae-woo (1988–1993) – Sentenced to 22 years in prison after his presidency.
- 7. Kim Young-sam (1993–1998) – Imprisoned during the term of President No. 3. As president, secured convictions against two of his predecessors.
- 8. Kim Dae-jung (1998–2003) – Imprisoned under President No. 3 and sentenced to death under President No. 5 (later pardoned). Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
- 9. Roh Moo-hyun (2003–2008) – Impeached (later overturned by the Constitutional Court). Investigated for corruption after his term and committed suicide.
- 10. Lee Myung-bak (2008–2013) – Arrested for corruption after his presidency; sentenced to 15 years in prison.
- 11. Park Geun-hye (2013–2016) – Impeached and arrested for corruption; sentenced to 24 years in prison.
- 12. Moon Jae-in – Recent president; no imprisonment.
As William “Bill” S. Preston Esq. and Ted “Theodore” Logan might say Most non-triumphant.
