President Yoon Suk Yeol's declaration of martial law and subsequent impeachment highlight weaknesses in South Korea's political system.
SEOUL — The events that have unfolded in South Korea this month, beginning with President Yoon Suk Yeol's short-lived declaration of martial law on Dec. 3, have underscored both the remarkable resilience and underlying fragility of the country's democracy. The system survived this time, but no democracy is safe if it constantly faces severe stress tests.First, the good news. The National Assembly quickly passed a resolution to rescind Yoon's declaration of martial law.
Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets to protest Yoon's decision and pressure lawmakers from the ruling People Power Party (PPP) to support his impeachment. Their efforts worked: while PPP representatives walked out of the Assembly during the first impeachment vote, they supported the motion the second time, and it passed.Yoon has now been suspended and must wait up to six months for the Constitutional Court to decide whether to uphold his impeachment. If it does, a new presidential election will be held within 60 days. This uneasy period has been made even more uncertain by interim President Han Duck-soo's refusal to nominate three justices to fill the nine-member court. Han himself has now been impeached.This ongoing drama highlights fundamental vulnerabilities in South Korea's political system. The 1987 constitutional amendment that ended the country's military dictatorship introduced a single-term, five-year presidency. Citizens were so elated finally to be able to elect their president by direct popular vote that few questions were asked about the constraints on presidential power. It has since become apparent, however, that South Korea's constitutional framework lacks sufficient checks and balances.Though the Constitution tasks prime ministers with recommending the appointment or dismissal of Cabinet members, successive presidents have unilaterally wielded these power
SOUTH KOREA DEMOCRACY YOOON SUK YEOL IMPEACHMENT CONSTITUTIONAL CRISIS
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