South Korea Court to Rule on Yoon's Impeachment This Friday

Photo : AFP

South Korea’s Constitutional Court will decide on Friday whether President Yoon Suk Yeol will stay in office or be removed. The decision will either remove him from office or bring him back. This decision is expected to cause more divisions in South Korea.

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President Yoon was impeached in December after he ordered martial law for a short time, which created a big political crisis. Many people in South Korea have protested, both supporting and opposing Yoon. The police said they would use all their workers to keep order and handle any acts of violence or damage.

The court said on Tuesday that it will give its final decision on Friday at 11 a.m., and the ruling will be shown live on TV.

The National Assembly, which is controlled by the opposition, voted to impeach Yoon after he declared martial law on December 3. He was also charged in January with criminal rebellion. The court’s decision will decide if South Korea needs to hold a new election for a president or if Yoon will return to being president. If Yoon is removed, the country will have to hold an election within two months. If the court cancels the impeachment, Yoon will go back to his presidential duties.

The problem began when Yoon ordered hundreds of soldiers and police to go to the National Assembly after he declared martial law. Yoon said he wanted to keep order, but some military officials said he told them to stop lawmakers from voting on his decree and to arrest his political opponents.

Yoon explained that his goal wasn’t to keep martial law for a long time. He said he only wanted to show the opposition party’s actions in stopping his plans. Yoon called the Democratic Party “a den of criminals” and “anti-state forces.” He said they were blocking his work and making things harder for his government.

In South Korea, a president can declare martial law only in a time of war or emergency. However, the opposition said the country was not in such an emergency. The impeachment claim said that Yoon misused his power to stop the National Assembly’s work and arrest politicians, breaking the law.

Martial law lasted only six hours because lawmakers managed to enter the assembly and cancel the decree. Although no violence happened, seeing armed soldiers at the assembly reminded many people of South Korea’s past military rule. This was the first time South Korea had martial law since 1980.

Before the impeachment vote, most people in South Korea supported removing Yoon. But after the impeachment, more people started supporting Yoon, especially conservatives who thought the Democratic Party was attacking him too much.

Yoon was released from prison on March 8 after a Seoul court decided not to arrest him. He will face trial for his actions. Ten military and police officials have been arrested and charged for their role in martial law.