Declaration of ‘Emergency Martial Law’ in South Korea

New Delhi: South Korea’s President Yoon Suk-yeol on Tuesday declared ‘Emergency Martial Law’ in the country, accusing opposition parties of paralyzing the government, sympathizing with North Korea and weakening the country’s constitutional system. He made this announcement in a televised address to the nation. With this, the ongoing political tension in South Korea has increased further.

President Yoon Suk-yeol said in his address, ‘I declare emergency martial law to protect South Korea from the threats posed by North Korea’s communist forces and to eliminate anti-national elements.’ He described it as necessary to protect the country’s independent and constitutional system. This announcement comes after ongoing disputes between Yoon’s People’s Power Party and the opposition Democratic Party over next year’s budget.

Opposition MPs, who hold a majority in South Korea’s 300-member parliament, recently approved a smaller budget proposal. President Yoon Suk-Yol criticized it for cutting key funding. He said, “Our National Assembly has become a haven for criminals. It has become a haven for legislative dictatorship, which wants to paralyze the judicial and administrative systems and destroy our liberal democratic system.”

Yun accused the opposition of cutting the budget needed to deal with drug crimes and maintain public safety. He said the opposition wants to make the country a ‘drug haven’ and turn peace into chaos. Yoon accused opposition MPs of being in cahoots with anti-national forces and intending to overthrow the government. He defended his decision, calling it necessary. Yoon said, “Without caring about people’s livelihoods, the opposition party has paralyzed the regime only to carry out impeachment, special investigation and protect its leader from the hands of the law.”

Yoon, who has faced protests in the opposition-controlled National Assembly since taking office in May 2022, insisted that the move was necessary to restore order and protect South Korea’s independence. He said, ‘I will restore normalcy in the country by eliminating anti-national forces as soon as possible.’

The Democratic Party-led opposition had alleged a few months ago that President Yoon was conspiring to impose martial law to avert impeachment proceedings against him for alleged abuse of power. Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung had said that martial law could lead to dictatorship in the country. Yoon dismissed these allegations of the opposition as fabricated. Prime Minister Han Duck-soo also denied the claims and said that the South Korean people would not accept such a move.

Yun became the first president since 1987 not to attend the inauguration ceremony of a new parliamentary term. His office cited ongoing parliamentary investigations and impeachment threats as the reason for his absence. The incident further dented tense relations between Yoon and the opposition. Opposition lawmakers claim President Yoon has undermined democratic processes by using his veto power against parliamentary bills and appointing loyalists to key military positions, fueling speculation about his intentions.