South Korean elected officials voted overnight to Wednesday local time that the president’s introduction of a state of military emergency must be repealed, reports Reuters. All the 190 present out of the 300 elected representatives voted in favour. – I declare that the decision to lift the military state of emergency has been adopted, said National Assembly President Woo Won-shik, writes AFP. President Yoon Suk-yeol’s own party, the People’s Power Party, is also asking the president to lift the state of emergency. But the military defied parliament for a long time. – We will maintain the military state of emergency until it is lifted by the president, they say. A short time later, the president said that he will do just that: – We have withdrawn the military that was deployed for the operations. We accept the National Assembly’s request and lift the state of emergency, Yoon said in a televised speech. Sprayed soldiers with fire extinguisher Tuesday evening and night into Wednesday became dramatic in South Korea’s capital Seoul. Especially at the National Assembly. Late in the evening, President Yoon Suk-yeol announced the imposition of a state of military emergency in a surprise televised speech. Then soldiers tried to enter the National Assembly, while staff sprayed them with fire extinguishers and police blocked the gates to the building. The soldiers eventually left the building. Soldiers were on their way out of the National Assembly. Photo: Kim Ju-sung / AP In a speech a little later, opposition leader Lee Jae-Myung offered some reassuring words: – The crisis is an opportunity. Although our country continues to go backwards, this illegal declaration of a state of emergency will not make the situation worse, but will be an opportunity to break out of the spiral and return to a normal society. North Korean soldiers blamed In his televised address earlier in the evening, President Yoon Suk-yeol accused the opposition Democratic Party, led by Lee Jae-myung, of having links to North Korea and of undermining the state. – Through the state of emergency, I will rebuild South Korea, which is about to fall into an abyss of national destruction, Yoon said in the speech broadcast on YTN. Police officers stood in front of the main gate of the National Assembly in Seoul late Tuesday night. Photo: JUNG YEON-JE / AFP Yoon said, among other things, that it would protect the country from the threat of “North Korea’s communist forces” and promised to wipe out pro-North Korean “anti-state elements”. Blocked the National Assembly After the announcement, the entrance to the National Assembly was blocked by police officers with shields. Images on television showed helicopters landing on the roof of the building. Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung said the state of emergency is “unconstitutional,” according to South Korean news agency Yonhap. “Tanks, armored personnel carriers and armed soldiers with firearms and knives will rule the country,” Lee said in a live-streamed speech. – South Korea’s economy will collapse irretrievably. Citizens: Come to the National Assembly, he stressed. The state of emergency included, among other things, a ban on political activity and activity at the National Assembly. Nevertheless, members of the opposition and protesters gathered there. People inside South Korea’s National Assembly barricade the doors. Photo: YONHAP / Reuters Soldiers have gathered outside. Photo: JUNG YEON-JE / AFP Soldiers and civilians bark together outside the National Assembly. Photo: JUNG YEON-JE / AFP There are large demonstrations outside the National Assembly. Photo: Soo-hyeon Kim / Reuters Several people demonstrate outside the National Assembly. Photo: ANTHONY WALLACE / AFP Corruption allegations It is the first time since the beginning of the 1980s that there has been a state of military emergency in South Korea. Among other things, the media were to be subject to the control of the military command, and people could be arrested without a warrant. All doctors were ordered back to work. – Those who violate the military state of emergency can be arrested, said the military command. Military state of emergency in South Korea Reuters has translated the presidential order that imposed a military state of emergency in South Korea on Tuesday, December 3: “To protect liberal democracy against the threat of anti-state forces active in South Korea to overthrow the South Korean regime and to protect the safety of the population, the following is hereby declared throughout the Republic of Korea from 23:00 on 3 December 2024: All political activity, including the activities of the National Assembly, local councils, political parties, political associations, meetings and demonstrations, is prohibited. All actions that work against or attempt to overthrow the liberal democratic system are prohibited, and fake news, manipulation of public opinion and false propaganda are prohibited. All media and publications are subject to the control of the military command. Strikes, work stoppages and gatherings that encourage social unrest are prohibited. All medical personnel, including on-call doctors who are on strike or have left the industry, must return to their work within 48 hours and perform their work faithfully. Those who violate this will be punished in accordance with military law. Innocent ordinary citizens, with the exception of anti-state forces and other subversive forces, will be subject to measures that minimize inconvenience to their daily lives. Those who violate this declaration may be arrested, detained and searched without a warrant in accordance with Article 9 of the Military Law of South Korea (Special Powers of the Military Commander) and will be punished in accordance with Article 14 of the Military Law (Penal Provisions). Military commander, general in the army, Park An-suTuesday 3 December 2024” Professor of Korean studies at UiO, Vladimir Tikhonov, believes that we are witnessing the consequences of a slow-moving “political crisis”, which has developed in recent months. – The current president is ultra-conservative. But he also has many scandals on him, says Tikhonov to news. UiO professor Vladimir Tikhonov believes the president is reacting to accusations of corruption and misuse of public funds. Photo: Olaf Christensen – There have been accusations of corruption and misuse of public funds, he continues. – Democracy is collapsing Tikhonov says that the president has lost support. Tuesday’s introduction of a state of emergency may be a reaction to that. The professor also rejects that there should be North Korean soldiers in South Korea. – For several months, the opposition has carried out a campaign to force the president to resign. It looks like this is the president’s response. Police officers stop people from entering the National Assembly. Photo: JUNG YEON-JE / AFP But Tikhonov does not think most South Koreans will accept the president’s state of emergency. – They will come out into the streets. I expect there to be large demonstrations. And we don’t know how far the president can go to crack down on them, emphasizes the UiO professor. A crowd had gathered in front of the National Assembly in Seoul. Photo: Ahn Young-joon / AP Reaching out to political opponents Tensions between US-allied South Korea and North Korea, which is allied with Russia and China, have increased recently. Especially after the nuclear power North Korea sent soldiers to Russia to assist in the war against Ukraine. The Reuters news agency points out that Yoon did not point to concrete threats in his speech. The main focus was political opponents. Among other things, Yoon referred to a proposal from the Democratic Party to impeach representatives from the prosecution. He also criticized the parliament’s rejection of a budget proposal: – This paralyzes the state’s activities and turns the National Assembly into a nest of criminals, Yoon said, writes CNN. Lost support President Yoon Suk-yeol leads the conservative People’s Power Party. He has been president of South Korea since May 2022. He then won the election over Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party with less than 1 percent support, according to NPR. Helicopter in the sky over Seoul early Wednesday morning local time. Photo: Kim Hong-Ji / Reuters In April, the party and Yoon lost the parliamentary election. The Democratic Party gained a majority in parliament. The poor election result was seen as an expression that people were dissatisfied with higher food prices and inadequate welfare services, writes the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in an analysis. South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol declared a state of emergency on television late Tuesday night local time. Photo: Ahn Young-joon / AP South Korea has been considered a stable democracy since the late 1980s. Before this, there were a number of coups in the country. – We hope and expect that all political disagreements in Korea will be resolved peacefully and in accordance with legal principles, said US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell on Tuesday evening. He emphasizes that the US’s alliance with South Korea is rock solid. Interested in abroad? Listen to the foreign affairs editor’s podcast: Published 03.12.2024, at 15.07 Updated 03.12.2024, at 20.56
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South Korea’s president lifts the state of emergency after pressure – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
