Leader of South Korean Ruling Party Vows to Block Impeachment Against President
Seoul view
MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Han Dong-hoon, the leader of the ruling People Power Party, has vowed to make efforts to prevent President Yoon Suk Yeol from being impeached, the Yonhap news agency reported on Thursday. On Wednesday, the media reported that South Korea’s parliament submitted a motion to impeach Yoon. Yonhap reported later that the main opposition Democratic Party is seeking a vote on the impeachment motion against Yoon on Saturday. “As party leader, I will work to ensure that this impeachment (motion) does not pass to prevent harm from unprepared chaos to the public and supporters,” Han was quoted as saying by the news agency. At the same time, Han reiterated the call for Yoon to leave the party after his attempt to impose martial law in the country, the report added. Late on Tuesday, Yoon declared martial law “to purge pro-North Korean forces and maintain the liberal constitutional order.” The president claimed that attempts by the South Korean opposition to impeach several high-ranking officials in his government posed a threat of a political paralysis. The South Korean parliament voted to overturn the declaration of martial law. Of the 300 lawmakers, 190 were present, and the decision was made unanimously. Under the constitution, the president is required to immediately revoke martial law once parliament votes against it by a majority. However, Yoon delayed issuing a formal statement for several hours. He explained that after the parliamentary decision, he had immediately ordered a government meeting to formalize the revocation, but a lack of quorum prevented the decision from being made. A subsequent meeting later officially repealed the martial law.Earlier, South Korea’s leading opposition Democratic Party (DP) has said that it will attempt to hold a vote on the impeachment motion against South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on December 7, the Yonhap news agency reported on Thursday.Cho Seung-rae, the party’s deputy spokesperson, said that it plans to hold a vote on Saturday at 19:00 local time (10:00 GMT) to allow the lawmakers of the ruling People Power Party to have enough time to discuss the motion.On Wednesday, Yonhap reported that six parties in South Korea, including the main opposition Democratic Party, had filed an impeachment bill against the president in the parliament, with a vote planned for December 6-7.
