President Yoon Suk Yeol said Saturday that he would never succumb to the threat of impeachment, after the National Assembly voted 204-85 in favor of a motion that could eventually dethrone the incumbent president. "I will never surrender," he said in his fifth address to the nation in the past two weeks since his imposition of martial law on Dec. 3. "I will cherish any reprimand, encouragement and support you show to me, and I will do my best for the country until the end," h

Politics Dec. 14, 2024

With incumbent President Yoon Suk Yeol to be suspended following the National Assembly's approval to put him in front of the Constitutional Court for trial, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo will serve as acting president for up to six months. Han has become South Korea's first acting president in eight years, after Hwang Kyo-ahn, the former prime minister who assumed former President Park Geun-hye's role in December 2016. Under Article 71 of the South Korean Constitution, if the presid

Politics Dec. 14, 2024

An alleged assassination plot was unable to proceed as planned as President Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law imposition on Dec. 3 was short-lived, claimed a liberal figure at the National Assembly on Friday. Radio show host Kim Ou-joon told lawmakers at the Assembly's Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee that he had obtained information that troops dedicated to special operations were on standby for an assassination operation. Kim was earlier revealed to have been one of

Politics Dec. 14, 2024

It was another casual night after work on Dec. 3, replete with glasses of "somaek," a beer cocktail mixed with a shot of soju. No one at the reporters' unofficial dinner gathering with the administrative staff of President Yoon Suk Yeol's office had any idea that one of the biggest threats in the 21st century to South Korea's democracy was lurking in the shadows. Not too long into the dinner, buzzes of a "shocking announcement" from the presidential office spre

Politics Dec. 13, 2024

The National Assembly has rescheduled its vote on the motion to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol, moving it up by an hour to 4 p.m. on Saturday, according to the office of National Assembly Speaker Rep. Woo Won-shik on Friday. This came after 190 lawmakers of all six opposition parties and independent lawmaker Rep. Kim Jong-min tabled the impeachment motion to the National Assembly at around 2 p.m. Under South Korean law, a voting session may convene 24 hours after the motion is tabled, and must

Politics Dec. 13, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol's approval rating has fallen to just 11 percent, hitting his lowest point again in the aftermath of his martial law declaration on Dec. 3, the most recent poll result showed Friday. Previous polls showed that Yoon's approval rating during the poll between Dec. 3 and Dec. 5 stood at 16 percent, while the figure has been on a downward trend over the week, to 13 percent for the Dec. 4-5 period and 11 percent for the Dec. 6-7 period. In the meanwhile, 85 percent of respondent

Politics Dec. 13, 2024

Newly elected Floor Leader of the ruling People Power Party Rep. Kweon Seong-dong said Friday he asked National Assembly Speaker Rep. Woo Won-shik to kick off parliamentary discourse to amend the Constitution of South Korea. Kweon told reporters after his meeting with Woo on Friday morning that he suggested the speaker take the lead in the discourse to amend the Constitution. South Korea last amended the Constitution in 1987 in the wake of its transition to democracy. "Now is the right time

Politics Dec. 13, 2024

The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea Chair Rep. Lee Jae-myung, in a televised speech on Friday, urged ruling party lawmakers to vote in favor of the motion to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol in the National Assembly's session on Saturday. "It's not Yoon Suk Yeol or your party that you're supposed to protect," said Lee, who leads the party that controls the majority in the Assembly. "It's the people wailing in the streets, in the cold, and their livelihoods that you're sup

Politics Dec. 13, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday rejected calls for his resignation, asserting that his declaration of martial law on Dec. 3 was both an inevitable and legitimate decision made by the head of state, marking another unexpected development that has clearly dismissed the ruling party's "orderly retreat" scenario. Yoon said in the 29-minute address, televised at around 9:40 a.m., that he pledged to withstand his ordeals until the end, demonstrating his will to respond legally to im

Politics Dec. 12, 2024

Kim Hong-il, former chief of South Korea's broadcast watchdog the Korea Communications Commission, might serve as one of President Yoon Suk Yeol's attorneys should Yoon's legal troubles deepen, according to news reports Wednesday. Kim, who had reportedly quit local law firm Shin & Kim, would be joined on a team of up to six attorneys, according to news reports. This came as police accused Yoon of inciting insurrection by declaring martial law and cracking down on dissidents th

Politics Dec. 11, 2024

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said he opposed President Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law declaration on Dec. 3 and regretted he could not keep Yoon's martial law imposition at bay. "Ultimately, I could not stop (the martial law declaration)," Han told lawmakers at the National Assembly's plenary session Wednesday. "I feel regretful and remorseful." Han's remarks preceded the Cabinet members' apology. Han and most other Cabinet members bowed in unison in a sh

Politics Dec. 11, 2024

The ruling People Power Party is struggling to justify the legitimacy of transferring President Yoon Suk Yeol's role to the party and government, as calls for impeachment escalate. Amid this struggle a leadership vacuum is opening up in the ruling party. The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea announced Monday it was seeking to expel the party's Floor Leader Rep. Choo Kyung-ho -- who offered to resign following Saturday's impeachment vote -- from the National Assembly, accus

Politics Dec. 9, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol's approval rating fell by 7.7 percentage points to 17.3 percent in the first week of December due to his abrupt imposition of martial law, the biggest threat to South Korea's democracy in the 21st century, a poll showed Monday. In the meantime, Yoon has not appeared in public for three days since he delivered a televised address on Saturday promising that he would entrust his executive powers to his People Power Party. The presidential office has been almost non

Politics Dec. 9, 2024

Since the impeachment motion at the National Assembly failed, President Yoon Suk Yeol's office had remained silent as of press time Sunday. Yoon's office express no opinion about the vote, which ended 9:20 p.m. Saturday after falling short of the 200 votes needed to pass. Neither did it make any public announcement concerning Yoon's decision based on his power to appoint or sack a Cabinet member under the Constitution. The Ministry of Interior and Safety announced that the Interio

Politics Dec. 8, 2024

South Korea is facing unprecedented political turmoil as the ruling People Power Party, led by its chair Han Dong-hoon, grapples with the exit strategy that would otherwise determine the fate of President Yoon Suk Yeol. Amid the opposition Democratic Party of Korea's persistent push for Yoon's impeachment following allegations of insurrection, the conservative ruling bloc has now strategically shifted toward calls for Yoon's “orderly resignation,” arguing that this pat

Politics Dec. 8, 2024