Court set to rule on impeached Yoon

Protesters wait, 'anxious' and 'angry'

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Court is set to rule today on whether to strip impeached President Yoon Suk-yeol of office over his abortive declara-tion of martial law which plunged the country into turmoil.

Mr Yoon, who has defended his Dec 3 attempt to subvert civilian rule as necessary to root out "anti-state forces," still commands the backing of die-hard supporters, who have staged protests in his favour over the verdict.

But tens of thousands of demonstra-tors have also poured into the streets every weekend demanding the court remove him. They say that a failure to oust him would damage the democracy their country has enjoyed since 1987, following years of dictatorships.

AFP journalists spoke to people in Seoul about how they feel:

See Hee-kyu, 47, said he hoped the court would uphold Mr Yoon's impeachment.

"I've learned that the foundation of the rule of law is common sense," the welfare worker told AFP.

"I don't think President Yoon has ever acted in that spirit. That's why I believe he needs to be fully impeached."