More than five hours passed since the president of South Korea paralyzed the country by imposing a draconian martial law until he lifted the decree after a strong rejection from the Parliament and a society that, for a moment, saw itself reflected in the mirror of its neighbor in the North. Or that looked back to the past and remembered those decades when, after the partition of the Korean Peninsula, Seoul was ruled by dictators just as cruel as those in Pyongyang.
From 11:00 p.m. on the night of December 3 to 4:30 a.m. on December 4, South Korea, so idealized in the West for its cultural phenomena, was shaken by an authoritarian outburst. The one who unleashed the political storm was a leader with a brilliant career as a prosecutor fighting against what was undermining the pillars of the political system of a country that prides itself on being one of the most vibrant democracies in Asia.
What many analysts already define as an "attempted self-coup" began with the televised speech of President Yoon Suk Yeol (63 years old) in which he surprised everyone by declaring a martial law that banned all political and parliamentary activities, as well as public demonstrations that challenged that decree, and deployed the army to the streets to ensure its enforcement. He did this, according to Yoon, to "protect the country from North Korean communist forces and eliminate anti-state elements."
The conservative president, in his televised speech, referred to the liberal opposition bloc that swept the April elections to the National Assembly, winning over 60% of the 300 seats in Parliament. With control of the legislative body, the opposition has been pushing for the dismissal of key members of his cabinet and delaying a budget bill. The leader, to justify his decision, played on the fear of North Korea by adding that the main opposition party sympathizes with the regime of Kim Jong-un.
For South Koreans who were not sufficiently alarmed by their president's unprecedented appearance, a man dressed in military uniform appeared in local media, General Park An Soo, to announce that he had been appointed "martial law commander" and to remind that all political activities were prohibited and that freedom of the press was abolished. "All media are under the control of the martial law command," he warned.
Fortunately for the citizens, South Korean media, starting with the Yonhap news agency, continued reporting independently, explaining that members of the National Assembly (Parliament) had been denied access to the building and that the main opposition party, the Democratic Party, had urged all its lawmakers to go to the legislative body for an emergency vote to overturn the martial law.
While lawmakers managed to enter and the military took positions at the entrance of the chamber and its surroundings, thousands of Seoul residents gathered in front of the Assembly to show their repudiation of the decree and demand the president's resignation. Some protesters tried to enter the building but were forcibly restrained by the military, who had set up barricades with benches and chairs at the doors.
Shortly after 1:00 a.m., lawmakers unanimously voted to block the president's martial law decree. A majority of the members of the National Assembly (190 out of 300) managed to enter the building in the early hours and vote to reject the emergency law.
"The people must remain calm. The National Assembly will defend democracy alongside the people. Military personnel enforcing martial law will be tried for treason," declared Woo Son-shik, President of the South Korean Parliament. After the vote, the troops that had entered the main legislative building began to withdraw.
An hour and a half later, lawmakers remained in their seats in the chamber waiting for the president to comply with the Parliament's decision and lift the martial law. Among the protesters gathered outside the building, there was much concern about what might happen if Yoon clung to his decision and the military supported the president if he decided to dissolve the Parliament.
At 3:30 a.m., the military and police had already withdrawn, but President Yoon still had not responded to the demand to end the martial law. At that moment, a spokesperson for the Democratic Party told the media that several soldiers who had entered the Parliament attempted unsuccessfully to arrest the opposition leader, Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the ruling party, Han Dong-hoon, and the President of the National Assembly.
From outside South Korea, statements from Western allies expressing concern about the political crisis in Seoul began to arrive. From the United States, a National Security Council spokesperson stated that Washington was not informed of the intentions of the South Korean president.
At 4:00 a.m., the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, one of the largest unions in the country, declared an "indefinite general strike" until President Yoon resigns. Meanwhile, around the Parliament, the atmosphere was much calmer with only a few hundred protesters remaining.
South Korea's Most Chaotic Night
At 4:30 a.m., the long-awaited statement from the president arrived:the state of emergency was lifted. "I declared the emergency martial law at 11 p.m. yesterday as an act of national resolve against anti-state forces trying to paralyze the essential functions of the State and disrupt the constitutional order of our liberal democracy," Yoon insisted in a statement where he explained that he had been waiting for all members of his cabinet to gather to end the martial law that led to the most chaotic night in recent history of South Korea.
Protesters demand the resignation of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol during a protest in front of the National Assembly in the early hours of Wednesday, December 4.Ahn Young-joonAP
After the decree was lifted, both opposition leaders and those from his own party are demanding Yoon's resignation.
In Seoul, on the streets, the majority opinion is that the leader must leave the Blue House, the South Korean equivalent of the White House. Throughout the morning and afternoon (local time), many legislators, both from the opposition and the ruling party, have passed by the Parliament to express their opinion on the chaos of the previous night in front of hundreds of supporters of all kinds of ideologies.
"The declaration of martial law is illegal and constitutes a criminal act that directly violates the Constitution. It is essentially a coup d'état," said an opposition politician, Kim Ming-seok, in an unusual English statement to foreign media covering the political crisis in Seoul.
The entire opposition is intensifying pressure for Yoon to resign, and the term "impeachment" is on everyone's lips. Even the president's party is turning its back on him. Right-wing and left-wing media have also come out with scathing editorials against Yoon.
The South Korean news agency Yonhap has revealed that opposition parties plan to present a bill on Wednesday calling for President Yoon's impeachment. The vote could take place on December 6 or 7.