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Why South Korea has been gripped by political instability How one man threw South Korea into a political crisis
(6 days later)
It was around 23:00 on a Tuesday night when - out of nowhere - South Korea's president Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law in the Asian democracy for the first time in nearly 50 years. South Korea's month-long political crisis saw another day of high drama with police failing to arrest suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol after a six-hour standoff.
Explaining his decision, he mentioned "anti-state forces" and the threat from North Korea. But it soon became clear that it had not been spurred by external threats but by his own desperate political troubles. Authorities had sought to arrest Yoon over his short-lived martial law declaration in early December - but they spent half the day locked in confrontation with the presidential security team.
The law was voted down just hours later - but it set in motion a string of events that have led to a state of political chaos in South Korea. This follows an unprecedented few weeks in which the opposition-dominated parliament voted to impeach Yoon and then the man who succeeded him as acting president.
The president's gamble backfired: What was he thinking? Although hundreds of Yoon supporters gathered outside the presidential residence to protest the arrest, his future remains uncertain.
Woman who grabbed South Korean soldier's gun speaks to BBC Officers were seeking to arrest him as part of a criminal investigation into the martial law declaration. But his fate is also in the hands of the country's constitutional court, which can remove him from office by upholding the impeachment vote.
How two hours of martial law chaos unfolded Why did Yoon impose martial law?
Who is Yoon and why did he impose martial law? It was an hour to midnight on 3 December when South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law - which had never happened since the country became a democracy in 1987.
On 3 December, the country was stunned when Yoon said he was imposing martial law to protect the country from "anti-state" forces that sympathised with North Korea. Yoon said he was protecting the country from "anti-state" forces that sympathised with North Korea - but it soon became clear that he was spurred by his own political troubles.
South Korean politicians immediately called Yoon's declaration illegal and unconstitutional. The leader of his own party, the conservative People's Power Party, also called Yoon's act "the wrong move". Ever since he took office in May 2022, Yoon has weathered scandals and low ratings. In 2024, he became a lame-duck president after the main opposition Democratic Party won by a landslide general elections. He was reduced to vetoing bills passed by the opposition, a tactic that they used with "unprecedented frequency", says Celeste Arrington, director of The George Washington University Institute for Korean Studies.
Meanwhile, the leader of the country's largest opposition party, Lee Jae-myung of the liberal Democratic Party (DP) called on his MPs to converge on parliament to vote down the declaration. Days before 3 Dec, the opposition slashed the budget Yoon's government had proposed. And the opposition was also moving to impeach cabinet members for failing to investigate first lady Kim Keon Hee, who has also been embroiled in scandal.
He also called on ordinary South Koreans to show up at parliament in protest. Up against these political challenges, and reportedly under the advice of senior aides, Yoon decided to impose martial law.
Thousands heeded the call, rushing to gather outside the now heavily guarded parliament. Protesters chanted "no martial law" and "strike down dictatorship". Thousands of people have taken to the streets since December with calls for Yoon to be removed from office.
And lawmakers were also able to make their way around the barricades - even climbing fences to make it to the voting chamber. But the decison sparked protests and public anger.
Shortly after 01:00 on Wednesday, South Korea's parliament, with 190 of its 300 members present, voted down the measure. President Yoon's declaration of martial law was ruled invalid. MPs voted down the declaration, with many climbing fences and breaking barricades to enter the heavily guarded National Assembly to do so.
The last time martial law was declared in South Korea was in 1979, when the country's then long-term military dictator Park Chung-hee was assassinated during a coup. Lawmakers across the political spectrum decried the move as unconstitutional. Even the then-leader of Yoon's conservative People's Power Party called it "wrong".
It has never been invoked since the country became a parliamentary democracy in 1987. Days and nights of protests followed in the chilly temperatures, with tens of thousands of people calling for Yoon to be removed from office.
But why did he do it? "No martial law!" they chanted. "Strike down dictatorship!"
Yoon was relegated to a lame duck president and reduced to vetoing bills passed by the opposition, a tactic that he used with "unprecedented frequency", said Celeste Arrington, director of The George Washington University Institute for Korean Studies. What happened next?
Then on the week on 3 December, the opposition slashed the budget the government and ruling party had put forward. Opposition lawmakers soon filed a motion to impeach Yoon - it needed a two-thirds majority to pass.
Around the same time, the opposition was moving to impeach cabinet members, mainly the head of the government audit agency, for failing to investigate the president's wife. With 192 of 300 seats in hand, the oppoition Democratic Party still required eight PPP members to vote for impeachment. But Yoon's party members toed the line in that first vote, boycotting it to walk out of the chamber en masse.
With political challenges pushing his back against the wall, Yoon went for the nuclear option - pressing the red button of martial law. An undeterred opposition vowed to file an impeachment motion every week until passed. But their second attempt on 14 Dec was successful, with 12 members of Yoon's party voting for impeachment, alongside the opposition.
What was the response? Yoon was suspended from office and is now awaiting the decision of the constitutional court, which has to decide within six months of the impeachment vote. Analysts expect judges to reach a verdict by February.
The response came quickly - tens of thousands of protesters called for Yoon to be impeached, with polls saying three-quarters of South Koreans wanted to see him go. If Yoon is removed, the country must hold an election within the next 60 days to vote for a new leader. DP's leader Lee Jae-myung is the frontrunner by large margin in opinion polls.
Opposition lawmakers quickly filed a motion for him to be impeached - which went to parliament. Meanwhile, the politcial uncertainty continues.
Opposition members make up 192 seats of Korea's 300 seat parliament - so they needed eight members of the ruling party to vote in favour of impeachment, in order to reach the 200 votes needed to pass the motion. Yoon's successor, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo who had stepped in as acting president, has also been impeached - the opposition accused him of stalling Yoon's impeachment process. Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok is now acting president and acting prime minister.
But members of Yoon's People Power Party (PPP) boycotted the vote - walking out of parliament in protest. Several former cabinet ministers and Yoon's presidential aides have resigned over the events on 3 Dec. Some of them have been detained by the Corruption Investigation Office (CIO), which is investigating Yoon for abusing his power and inciting an insurrection with the martial law order.
But the opposition was undeterred. They said they would keep filing motions for Yoon to be impeached until they succeeded. Among those detained is former defence minister Kim Yong-hyun, who reportedly suggested the martial law declaration to Yoon. Kim had tried to take his own life while in detention.
And just a week after - on 14 December, they did. The failed attempt to arrest Yoon
Some of Yoon's own PPP voted with the opposition - giving them the 200 votes needed. Yoon has remained defiant throughout, refusing multiple summonses to appear for questioning, leading a Seoul court to issue a warrant for his arrest.
The country's Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, was named as the acting president - and took over Yoon's duties. On 3 January, about 100 police and CIO officers went up against the president's security team at his home in central Seoul.
But now he too has been impeached - the first time an acting president has been impeached in South Korea since it became a democracy. Finally the CIO suspended its operation after a six-hour standoff, citing safety concerns for its team on the ground.
Why did South Korea impeach its president - again? Investigators have until 6 January to arrest him before the warrant expires - after that they would need to apply for another warrant to detain him.
At the heart of the issue is Yoon's impeachment. The acting president has pledged to do all he can to restore stability, but if the opposition finds him uncooperative, they could move to impeach him.
Korea's Constitutional Court is typically made up of a nine-member bench. At least six judges must uphold Yoon's impeachment in order for the decision to be upheld. It's been an unprecedented month in South Korea. Yoon is the first sitting president to face arrest and what comes next remains unclear.
There are currently only six judges on the bench, meaning a single rejection would save Yoon from being removed. Financial markets have reacted badly to the uncertainty - at the end of December, the South Korean won plunged to its lowest level against the dollar since the global financial crisis in 2008.
The opposition had hoped to get three additional nominees on the bench, something that would help improve the odds of Yoon getting impeached. South Korea is one of the world's most important economies and a crucial US ally - so turmoil on its shores is unwelcome on many fronts.
But earlier this week, Han blocked the appointment of the three judges - leading the opposition to file an impeachment motion against him, saying that he was refusing demands to complete Yoon's impeachment process. Additional reporting by Frances Mao in London
And unlike the 200 votes required for Yoon's impeachment, only 151 votes are needed to pass an impeachment bill against the acting president - meaning the opposition did not need the ruling party's support to do so.
On Friday, a total of 192 lawmakers voted for Han's impeachment.
He will be suspended from his duties as soon as he is officially notified by parliament.
So what now?
It's hard to say.
Finance minister Choi Sang-mok is set to replace Han as acting president, and has pledged to do all he can to end the country's political turmoil.
"Minimising governmental turmoil is of utmost importance at this moment," Choi said in an address shortly after his appointment, adding that "the government will also dedicate all its efforts to overcoming this period of turmoil".
But it's unclear if the opposition might move to impeach Choi, if they deem him to be uncooperative.
The markets have also reacted to the news. On Friday, the Korean won plunged to its lowest level against the dollar since the global financial crisis 16 years ago.
What lies ahead for Yoon's presidency, his party's rule and what happens next in one of the world's most important economies however, are still questions that remain unanswered.