South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol apologized Saturday for his brief declaration of martial law earlier in the week, as he now prepares for a parliamentary vote on whether to remove him.
Yoon said in a televised speech Saturday morning that he will evade legal or political responsibility for the declaration and vowed not to try to impose it again, according to The Associated Press. The president, a conservative, said he would leave it up to his party to offer a way forward amid the country's political turmoil, “including issues related to my term in office.”
“The declaration of their martial law came out of my desperation,” Yoon said. “But during its implementation, it caused anxiety and inconvenience to the public. I am very sorry and truly apologize to people who must have been very surprised.”
In his martial law declaration on Tuesday, Yoon called parliament a “den of criminals” that blocks state affairs and vowed to eliminate “shameless followers of North Korea and anti-state forces.”
SOUTH KOREA'S PRESIDENT WILL FACE AN IMPEACHMENT VOTE THIS WEEKEND OVER MARTIAL LAW ORDER, LAWMAKERS SAY
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks at the presidential office in Seoul, South Korea, Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024. (AP)
A vote in the National Assembly on an opposition-led motion to impeach Yoon is scheduled for Saturday afternoon. The opposition parties that jointly filed the impeachment motion hold 192 of the legislature's 300 seats, meaning they need at least eight additional votes from Yoon's conservative People Power Party to secure the two-thirds needed to pass the motion. .
Yoon's party called for his ouster on Friday, although it continued to formally oppose impeachment.
Opposition lawmakers say Yoon's declaration of martial law was a self-coup, so they drafted the impeachment motion on charges of rebellion.
If Yoon is charged, his powers will be suspended until the Constitutional Court decides whether to remove him from office. Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, second in command of the South Korean government, would assume his presidential responsibilities.
If the president is removed, elections must be held to replace him within 60 days.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks during an interview at the presidential office in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
On Tuesday, special forces troops were seen surrounding the parliament building and army helicopters were flying over the building. The military withdrew after the National Assembly voted unanimously to revoke Yoon's declaration of martial law, forcing him to lift it just hours after it was enacted.
The declaration of martial law was the first of its kind in more than 40 years in South Korea.
Since then, thousands of protesters have protested on the streets of Seoul, waving banners, shouting slogans and singing K-pop songs with changed lyrics to demand Yoon's ouster.
Han said he had received information that during the martial law period, Yoon ordered the country's defense counterintelligence commander to arrest and detain key politicians based on accusations of “anti-state activities.”
SOUTH KOREAN LEADER FACES GROWING CALL TO RESIGN OR BE CHARGED BY MARTIAL LAW
People hold candles during a candlelight vigil against South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. (AP)
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After Yoon's televised speech, Han again called for the president to resign. Han said the president was not in a state where he could normally carry out official duties.
“President Yoon Suk Yeol's early resignation is inevitable,” Han told reporters.
Hong Jang-won, first deputy director of South Korea's National Intelligence Service, told lawmakers in a closed-door briefing that Yoon called after imposing martial law and ordered him to help the defense counterintelligence unit arrest to key politicians, including Han, the main leader of the liberal opposition. Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung and National Assembly Speaker Woo Won Shik, according to Kim Byung-kee, one of the lawmakers who attended the meeting.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
