SEOUL – South Korea’s parliament voted to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol on Saturday in an extraordinary rebuke that came about after his own ruling party turned on him following his refusal to resign over his short-lived martial law attempt.
Following the vote, which sparked jubilation among protesters outside parliament, Yoon conceded that he will “stop temporarily for now, but the journey to the future that I’ve walked with the people for the past two years should not stop.” “I will not give up,” he said in a statement shared by the country’s presidential office. “With all the encouragement and support for me in mind, I will do my best until the last moment for the nation,” he added.
The country’s Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who will serve as acting president under South Korean law, told reporters that he would “devote all my strength and effort to stable operation of state affairs.” Kang Sun-woo, a lawmaker with the Democratic Party, told CNN Saturday that the “great democracy of South Korea will survive and will be born again” after the impeachment.
The dramatic decision marks the culmination of a stunning political showdown after Yoon briefly declared martial law on December 3 and sent soldiers to parliament, where lawmakers fought past troops to enter the building and vote down the decree. Yoon’s gamble backfired spectacularly, galvanizing many in the vibrant Asian democracy to call for his removal.
Opposition parties tried impeaching him a week ago – but Yoon survived after members of his ruling People Power Party boycotted the vote, saying they hoped the president would voluntarily resign instead. Yoon then doubled down – giving a defiant speech on Thursday in which he defended his martial law decision, lambasted the opposition, claimed he was trying to save the country and vowed to “fight until the last moment with the people.” Yet moments before that speech, the leader of Yoon’s party withdrew his support for the president and backed impeachment as the “only way to defend democracy”, instructing lawmakers to vote with their conscience.
Thousands of protesters gathered in Seoul on Saturday, braving the cold to call for Yoon to resign ahead of the vote, which was passed by 204 lawmakers with 85 voting against it. “He surely tried to have a war against the citizens so this is just what he deserved,” one protestor, Lim Dong Eon, told CNN outside the National Assembly building after the vote, where protesting has now turned into partying. Another protestor kept their message short, telling CNN: “Democracy is back!”. (CNN)
