Tuesday night, 3rd December, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol announced on live South Korean TV that he was officially imposing martial law. This sudden and unexpected declaration took the nation by surprise- albeit the South Korean parliament voted to nullify the declaration in a matter of hours, forcing the president to lift martial law shortly after it was announced.
An Overview of What’s Happening in South Korea
South Korea’s history with martial law is still prevalent to this day as the last time a leader in Seoul imposed martial law in the nation was as recent as 1979, which ended in 1987. This era started at the end of the 1950-1953 Korean War, after which a series of dictatorial leaders normalized proclaiming martial law to excuse stationing the military on the country’s streets to repress anti-government protests.
To this day, many South Koreans vividly remember martial law ruling over the country. Many express that the images of men in military gear, helicopters, and tanks descending on the National Assembly in Seoul bring back unpleasant memories in the nation.
When announcing the martial law on Tuesday, Yoon had pointed the finger at alleged pro-North Korean and anti-state civil forces for trying to destabilize the country. Although the president did not provide any specific evidence of intervention by Pyongyang, he did clearly state that there were opposition parties who had been hindering his policies and indicting some of his appointees. Although it is undeniable that the opposition-directed parliament, appointed in April this year, had prevented the president’s proposed policies several times, the startling decision of unannouncedly imposing martial law has been criticized by many.
One of the many names disapproving of the decision was the leader of Yoon’s own conservative People Power Party, Han Dong-hoon, who replied to the news by saying that imposing martial law was “wrong” and that the president would “stop it with the people”. The centrist liberal Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-Myung labeled the declaration as “illegal and unconstitutional”, gathering support from the people.
International relations professor at Michigan State University, Myunghee Lee, disclosed that Yoon “has become increasingly frustrated by both divisions in his own party and moves by the opposition in the National Assembly to block key parts of his agenda”.
Opposition supporters have also brought up the president’s numerous influence-peddling scandals, including his wife allegedly accepting a Dior bag from a pastor.
The condemned decision prompted the nation to question the reliability of the president’s authority. Lee added that Yoon, whose approval rating was as low as 19%, was already face-to-face with appeals for impeachment even before the events of this week, and was “in an incredibly weak position.” Even so, Lee describes what actually drove him and his strategists to make such a political decision thinking that it would be to Yoon’s benefit as a “real puzzle”-- declaring that the decision is a “foolish move” in the eyes of many.
What the Future Entails:
Many consider that impeachment would be the most suitable option as Yoon’s actions have been almost unanimously condemned by the nation, even within his own conservative People Power Party.
Following the nationwide outrage, the president’s senior advisers, secretaries, and even certain Cabinet members such as Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun, who is known to have a close relationship with Yoon, have collectively resigned from their positions. None of these indicators paint a promising picture for Yoon's future in office.
A day after the declaration of martial law, six opposition parties- including the main opposition party The Democratic Party of Korea, as well as The Rebuilding Korea Party, The Reform Party, The Jinbo Party, The Basic Income Party, and The Social Democratic Party- submitted a motion to impeach Yoon. The finalization of the decision would require the support of two-thirds of the parliament and the cooperation of at least six of Korea’s Constitutional Court judges. The speaker of the Assembly, Woo Won-sik, is arranged to launch a session to debate the motion either on Friday or Saturday. Following the proposal of impeachment, it is required for a vote to take place after three days.
Protests Over the Martial Law:
During the chaotic night that ensued following the president’s declaration, the people of South Korea settled on expressing their unrest in the streets. The protests prompted the government to send soldiers to block lawmakers from entering the National Assembly. A particular instance of protest against the soldiers caught the attention of the media.
The footage of 35-year-old Ahn Gwi-ryeong, a spokesperson for the main opposition party, grabbing the weapon of a soldier with her bare hands during the chaos has gone globally viral- garnering international attention towards the imposition of martial law in South Korea.
Ahn, later speaking in an interview following her impactful act against martial law, expressed:
“I didn’t think… I just knew I had to stop this.”
She informed the press that after hearing the president declare martial law across the nation, she had quickly gone to the assembly building- expressing that “a sense of panic took over her” when she first heard the news. However, she didn’t let the panic control her as she made her way to the National Assembly, knowing it wouldn’t be accepted under martial law.
When martial law is declared, ‘threatening’ political activities such as rallies and protests, as well as strikes and labor actions are factually prohibited. Media and publishing activities, which is how Ahn’s actions gathered worldwide attention, are strictly controlled by militant authorities. Violators of the listed rules, like Ahn, are to be arrested or detained without the need for a warrant.
Ahn recalls that when she arrived at the assembly building at 11 PM after opposition leader Lee Jae-Myung called on all lawmakers to gather and hold a vote to annul the military law declaration. Ahn turned off the office lights to avoid being detected by the helicopters sent by the military. However, when she reached the main building, soldiers were already present and standing against officials and citizens.
Ahn stated, “When I saw the armed soldiers… I felt like I was witnessing the regression of history.”
Ahn and other officials, in a desperate attempt to prevent the troops from entering where the vote would be held, began locking the revolving doors and piled pieces of furniture in front of the doors. Albeit their efforts, the troops continued to advance, which is when Ahn stepped up, expressing that she felt like she couldn’t stay silent, and the viral scene took place.
Finally, the voting took place and all the 190 members who were present at the scene voted to repeal the harsh martial law- and in a matter of a few hours, Yoon declared the end of martial law.
Recent Developments:
On Monday the 9th, South Korean officials have imposed a travel ban on president Yoon Suk Yeol as he is actively under investigation for his short-lived martial law declaration last Tuesday- regarded as a coup attempts by many. Over the weekend, Yoon survived the impeachment motion by a close difference as members of parliament from his party, People Power Party, boycotted the vote.
PPP members have agreed not to support the motion after Yoon Suk Yeol announced that he would shorten his term in office and not get involved in foreign and domestic affairs in the nation.
Supporters and members of the opposition Democratic Party have heavily criticized this deal between the PPP and Yoon, floor leader Park Chan-dae even going as far as calling it "an illegal, unconstitutional second insurrection and a second coup".
Tens of thousands citizens from all countries have come out and criticized the president's uncalled martial law order, asking for Yoon's immediate impeachment.
This nationwide unrest has manifested as the police forces raiding the presidential office as part of the investigation into Yoon's martial law declaration. The officials have also informed the public that former Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun, after having resigned following the events of 3rd December, had taken his life whil in custidy during the ongoing investigation.
The tragic and unexpected events of Wednesday took place after the Korean authorities arrested Kim Yong-hyun and the chiefs of the national and Seoul metropolitan police agencies over their alleged involvement in devising President Yoon's martial law attempt on 3rd December, which has prompted South Korea -Asia's fourth largest economy- tto experience a political upheaval that has been much more severe than what it has faced in many years.
Edited by: Ömer Gökce, Yağmur Ece Nisanoğlu