Yoon impeached by Parliament

Constitutional Court to decide if the suspended South Korean President is to be removed

- Wendy Teo

SEOUL - South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was suspended from his duties after Parliament passed a Bill to impeach him, 11 days after his botched attempt to declare martial law sparked massive protests to oust him.

Mr Yoon's future now hangs in the balance as his case proceeds to the Constitutional Court, which has 180 days to decide whether to uphold or overturn his impeachment. In the interim, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo is Acting President.

Twelve lawmakers in Mr Yoon's own party crossed party lines to vote with the 192 opposition members in the 300-strong National Assembly to gain the two-thirds vote required for the Bill to pass. In an earlier impeachment vote on Dec 7, Mr Yoon's People Power Party had stood behind him, defeating the motion.

Loud cheers erupted outside the National Assembly when the result was announced, from a massive crowd of at least 145,000 people, waving light sticks and dancing with joy to the news. Some had travelled to Seoul from as far as the southern cities of Busan and Tongyeong.

Similar rallies were held at other cities across the country such as Daegu, Gwangju and Jeju.

Political scientist Ahn Byong-jin from Kyung Hee University, who was in the crowd, saw the vote as a "successful first step", but the outcome is not yet certain.

The Bill must be approved by at least six justices in the Constitutional Court, but only six of the nine seats are filled, and a unanimous decision looks unlikely.

"Just as how we never imagined we would ever see martial law declared in our country again, we need to be very cautious that unseen variables might just crop up again," Prof Ahn told The Sunday Times, noting that Mr Yoon is a "very desperate man who will do anything to push back".

Mr Yoon is said to be relishing the chance to argue the legitimacy of his martial law decree in the Constitutional Court.