Martial Law in South Korea!

[EvaDK]

South Korea lawmakers vote to impeach President Yoon over martial law bid​

South Korea's opposition-led parliament impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol on Saturday, voting to suspend him from his official duties over his short-lived attempt last week to impose martial law. Under the constitution Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who was appointed by Yoon, becomes acting president.

Yoon is the second conservative president in a row to be impeached in South Korea. Park Geun-hye was removed from office in 2017.

The motion was carried after some members of Yoon's People Power Party joined the opposition parties, which control 192 seats in the 300-member national assembly, clearing the two-thirds threshold needed for impeachment.

The number of lawmakers supporting impeachment was 204, with 85 against, three abstentions and eight invalid ballots.
Although suspended, Yoon remains in office. The Constitutional Court will decide whether to remove him sometime in the next six months.

https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-...achment-vote-over-martial-law-bid-2024-12-14/

He probably thought he was in the clear, didn't he?

 

[sylvanllewelyn]

I am not a monarchist, but I think that a constitutional monarchy might be better-equipped to handle these situations.

 

[Broken_Erika]

Supporters gather to block authorities from detaining impeached South Korean president​

Yoon Suk Yeol has vowed to 'fight to the end' against 'anti-state forces'​

South Korea's anti-corruption agency has dispatched investigators to execute a warrant to detain impeached president Yoon Suk Yeol, as hundreds of his supporters are gathered at his residence in Seoul, vowing to block their approach.

Investigators of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials were seen loading boxes into several vehicles before leaving their building in the city of Gwacheon early Friday. The office didn't immediately confirm how many investigators were sent.

A Seoul court issued a warrant for Yoon's detention after he evaded multiple requests to appear for questioning and blocked searches of his office in Seoul, hindering an investigation into whether his short-lived power grab on Dec. 3 amounted to rebellion.

Thousands of police officers were gathered at Yoon's residence. There were no immediate reports of clashes with protesters.

If Yoon is detained, the anti-corruption agency will have 48 hours to investigate him and either request a warrant for his formal arrest or release him. Yoon's defence minister, police chief and several top military commanders have already been arrested over their roles in the martial law enactment.

It wasn't clear whether the president would co-operate with authorities trying to detain him. In a defiant New Year's message to conservative supporters rallying outside, Yoon said he would "fight to the end" against "anti-state forces."

Yoon's lawyers have argued the court's detainment warrant is invalid, claiming that the anti-corruption agency lacks the legal authority to investigate rebellion charges. They also accuse the court of bypassing a law that says locations potentially linked to military secrets cannot be seized or searched without the consent of the person in charge.

• Martial law is over, but South Koreans aren't done protesting

Oh Dong-woon, the agency's chief prosecutor, has indicated that police forces might be deployed if Yoon's security service resists the detention attempt.

But Yoon's legal team issued a statement on Thursday warning that any attempt by the agency to use police units for his detention would exceed their legal authority. The lawyers said police officers could face arrest by either the "presidential security service or any citizens" if they try to detain Yoon. They didn't elaborate further on the claim.

South Korean law permits anyone to make an arrest to stop an active crime, and critics accused Yoon of inciting his supporters to obstruct attempts to detain him.

Yoon Kap-keun, the president's lawyer, filed a challenge with the Seoul Western District Court on Thursday to block both the detention warrant for Yoon Suk Yeol and a related search warrant for his residence. The lawyer argued that both warrants violate criminal laws and the constitution.

The liberal opposition Democratic Party, which drove the legislative vote that impeached the president on Dec. 14 over his imposition of martial law, accused the leader of trying to mobilize his supporters to block his detention and called for law enforcement authorities to execute the warrant immediately.

Braving subfreezing temperatures, thousands of Yoon's supporters rallied for hours near his residence on Thursday amid a heavy police presence, waving South Korean and American flags while chanting, "Nullify the impeachment!" and "We will protect President Yoon Suk Yeol!" Officers removed some protesters who had lain down on a road leading to the entrance of Yoon's residence, but there were no immediate reports of major confrontations.

Some experts believe the anti-corruption agency, which is leading a joint investigation with police and military authorities, would not risk clashing with Yoon's security service, which has said it will provide security to Yoon in accordance with the law. The office may instead issue another summons for Yoon to appear for questioning if they are not able to execute the detainment warrant by Jan. 6.

Political turmoil​

Yoon's presidential powers were suspended following a National Assembly vote to impeach him on Dec. 14 over his imposition of martial law. Though it lasted only hours, it has triggered weeks of political turmoil, halted high-level diplomacy and rattled financial markets. Yoon's fate now lies with the Constitutional Court, which has begun deliberations on whether to uphold the impeachment and formally remove him from office or reinstate him.

To formally end Yoon's presidency, at least six justices on the nine-member Constitutional Court must vote in favour.

The National Assembly voted last week to also impeach Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who became acting president after Yoon's powers were suspended, over his reluctance to fill three Constitutional Court vacancies ahead of the court's review of Yoon's case.

Facing growing pressure, the new acting president, Deputy Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok, appointed two new justices on Tuesday, possibly increasing the chances of the court upholding Yoon's impeachment.

Cho Han-chang, one of the newly appointed justices, said Thursday that he began his job with a "heavy heart." Jeong Gye-seon, the other new justice, expressed hope that the remaining vacancy would be filled.

Yoon's imposition of martial law ended after only six hours when the National Assembly voted 190-0 to lift it despite attempts by heavily armed soldiers to prevent them from voting.

Yoon has defended his martial law decree as a necessary act of governance, portraying it as a temporary warning against the Democratic Party, which he has described as an "anti-state" force obstructing his agenda with its legislative majority.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/arrest-impeached-president-yoon-south-korea-1.7422056

 

[Arwon]

I am not a monarchist, but I think that a constitutional monarchy might be better-equipped to handle these situations.

It's not the monarchy, it's the parliamentarianism. Parliamentary republics are also a lot better than presidential systems in this way.

The problem with a powerful executive presidency is you get these sorts of impasses between the legislature and the executive, dueling mandates both established by the voters, and no clear way of resolving them. It can lead to a strong tendency to resort to military force. We've seen that all over the Americas (where most presidential republics are located) at various points. The system doesn't have a great track record of longevity except in the US, and even there....

 

[sylvanllewelyn]

Monarchy had a fixed line of succession. A life of luxury for doing (mostly) nothing. No incentive to participate in party politics.

Clemency or pardon of political figures need to be at the hands of someone above politics.

Elected or appointed symbolic presidents are just another political figure.

 

[Broken_Erika]

A dawn stand-off, a human wall and a failed arrest: South Korea enters uncharted territory​

The stand-off started long before dawn. By the time we arrived in the dark, an army of police had pushed back suspended president Yoon Suk Yeol's angry supporters, who'd camped out overnight hoping to stop his arrest. Some of those I spoke to were crying, others wailing, at what they feared was about to unfold.
As dawn broke, the first officers ran up to the house, but were instantly thwarted - blocked by a wall of soldiers protecting the compound. Reinforcements came, but could not help. The doors to Yoon's house stayed tightly sealed, his security team refusing the police officers entry.
For several hours the investigators waited, the crowds outside growing more agitated - until, after a series of scuffles between the police and security officials, they decided their mission was futile, and gave up.
This is totally uncharted territory for South Korea. It is the first time a sitting president has ever faced arrest, so there is no rule book to follow - but the current situation is nonetheless astonishing.
When Yoon was impeached three weeks ago, he was supposedly stripped of his power. So to have law enforcement officers trying to carry out an arrest - which they have legal warrant for - only to be blocked by Yoon's security team raises serious and uncomfortable questions about who is in charge here.
The investigating officers said they abandoned efforts to arrest Yoon not only because it looked impossible, but because they were concerned for their safety. They said 200 soldiers and security officers linked arms, forming a human wall to block the entrance to the presidential residence, with some carrying guns.

This is arguably part of Yoon's plan, leveraging a system he himself designed. Before he declared martial law last month – a plan we now know he cooked up months earlier – he surrounded himself with close friends and loyalists, injecting them into positions of power.
One of those people is the current head of his security team, who took up the job in September.
But although alarming, this situation is not entirely surprising. Yoon has refused to cooperate with the authorities over this investigation, ignoring every request to come in for questioning.
This is how things reached this point, where investigators felt they had no choice but to bring him in by force. Yoon is being investigated for one of the most serious political crimes there is: inciting an insurrection, which is punishable by life in prison or death.
Yoon has also spurred on his supporters, who have gathered in force outside his residence every day since the arrest warrant was issued. He sent them a letter on New Years' Day thanking them for "working hard" to defend both him and the country.

Although most people in South Korea are upset and angry at Yoon's decision to impose martial law, a core of his supporters have stayed loyal. Some even camped overnight, in freezing temperatures, to try and stop police reaching his home.
Many told me this morning they were prepared to die to protect Yoon, and repeated the same unfounded conspiracy theories that Yoon himself has floated – that last year's election was rigged, and the country had been infiltrated by pro-North Korea forces. They held up signs reading "stop the steal", a slogan they chanted over and over.
Attention is also now on South Korea's acting President Choi Sang-mok, and how far his powers extend; whether he could and should sack the president's security chief and force the team to allow his arrest. The opposition party says police should be arresting anyone who stands in their way.
Although investigators have until 6 January to attempt this arrest again – this is when the warrant runs out - it is unlikely they will go in once more without changing their strategy or negotiating with the security team in advance. They will want to avoid a repeat of today's failure.
They also have to contend with the throngs of Yoon's supporters, who now feel victorious and empowered. They believe they are largely responsible for the authorities' climb down. "We've won, we did it," they have been singing all afternoon.
As their confidence grows, so will their numbers, especially with the weekend approaching.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp8n0ng2m88o

 

[Arwon]

Clemency or pardon of political figures need to be at the hands of someone above politics.

Doesn't really need to exist at all. It's a judicial system function, not a political one.