Caught in a quicksand

On December 3, 2024, President Yoon Suk Yeol of the Republic of Korea (South Korea) in an unannounced speech stunned his country and the world with an attempt to impose martial law.

- DIPANKAR DEY

Yoon cited budget gridlock, the impeachment of government officials, and the "trampling of the constitutional order" as his motivations, and said that the opposition-led "National Assembly has become a den of criminals and is attempting to paralyse the nation's judicial administration." Following the decree, Army General Park An-soo assumed command. He issued a proclamation imposing immediate and sweeping restrictions on political parties, public demonstrations, and labour organising the very foundations of Korean democratic activism. The decree even placed all media under military control.

The political leaders across the spectrum swiftly denounced the move. In an emergency late-night session all 190 present members of the 300-seat National Assembly voted to block the decree. The rejection requires the president to end martial law but does not specify a time frame for doing so. National Assembly Chairman Woo Won-sik declared the decree "invalid".

On December 9, 2024, South Korea's Justice Ministry banned Yoon from leaving the country until the conclusion of an investigation into alleged treason. There is mounting evidence that Yoon ordered both the military and National Intelligence Service to arrest the speaker of the National Assembly, major party leaders, several judges and even media figures. It is also alleged that the suspended president Yoon Suk Yeol authorised the military to fire their weapons if needed to enter parliament during his failed bid to impose martial law. The declaration followed a budget tussle between Yoon's party and the opposition.