South Korea: Main Opposition Party Initiates Impeachment Motion Against Yoon Following Martial Law Attempt
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Seoul, Dec 12 (NationPress) The primary opposition party, the Democratic Party (DP) of South Korea, has presented a new motion for impeachment against President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday, stemming from his failed efforts to impose martial law. This development comes shortly after Yoon managed to avoid impeachment when a majority of lawmakers from the ruling party abstained from voting.
The DP's action follows the cancellation of an earlier impeachment motion on Saturday, which was rendered invalid due to insufficient attendance, as nearly all members of Yoon's People Power Party (PPP) chose to boycott the vote. The recent motion has been co-sponsored by five additional opposition parties.
After the first motion was dismissed, the DP announced its commitment to pursuing Yoon's impeachment on a weekly basis.
Similar to the initial attempt, the new motion cites Yoon's declaration of martial law on December 3 as a key reason for impeachment, asserting that it contravened the Constitution and existing laws due to not fulfilling necessary criteria.
The DP is set to present this motion during a plenary session on Friday and plans to hold a vote at 5 p.m. on Saturday.
According to legal requirements, an impeachment motion must be voted on within a timeframe of 24 to 72 hours after being reported to a plenary session.
Moreover, for the motion to succeed, it requires the backing of at least two-thirds of the 300-member Assembly.
The opposition coalition consists of 192 lawmakers, meaning the motion could pass with the support of just eight of the 108 PPP lawmakers, as reported by Yonhap news agency.
As of Thursday, seven PPP members have publicly expressed their support for Yoon's impeachment.
The National Assembly Secretariat announced plans to completely restrict access to the parliament for external visitors on Friday and Saturday during the impeachment discussions.
"All activities involving outsiders within the National Assembly premises will be prohibited," stated the secretariat, emphasizing that only individuals with employee IDs or access passes will be permitted entry.
