The South Korean president, Yoon Suk-yeol, this Thursday, defended his implementation of martial law last week as an “inevitable” measure to protect the “liberal democracy of the parliamentary dictatorship” of the opposition and assured that he is not “obsessed” with fully fulfilling his mandate and that he faces “with confidence” criminal investigations and attempts to remove him.
In a televised speech, the president assured that few troops and only elite forces were mobilized to prevent “accidents,” He considered that a crime of insurrection is being “fabricated” against him and disseminating a lot of false information and that still will not avoid facing “legal and political responsibilities.”
Yoon, who had only appeared publicly twice since martial law was declared on December 3 (the second time to apologize for the inconvenience caused to the population and not for declaring the state of emergency itself), appeared by surprise giving a speech about 10 minutes with an energetic gesture and even challenging.
The president assured that decreeing martial law corresponds to a “political judgment by the president” and that his resolution last week was “enormously calibrated” and represented a “constitutional decision and an act of Government” and not a declaration of ” civil war”.
Yoon, who is being investigated, among other things, for a crime of insurrection that may lead to life imprisonment or death penaltyHe also asserted that if he had really wanted to “paralyze the National Assembly (Parliament)” he would have declared martial law over the weekend.
High military commanders have assured in recent days that both the president and Kim Yong-hyun, a former defense minister who is detained and attempted suicide on Tuesday, personally gave them orders to forcibly empty Parliament so that the deputies could not revoke with their votes the state of exception, something that the chamber finally achieved thanks apparently to the fact that said orders were not followed.
The president, who He never expressed his intention to resign.also said that before proclaiming martial law he explained to his Cabinet that it was an “inevitable measure from the president’s perspective” and admitted that during that meeting, of which apparently there are no minutes, “many opinions were expressed against it.” .
The president, who faces a motion on Saturday to remove him that has a good chance of succeeding After the leader of his own party today asked to support his disqualification, he also accused the opposition Democratic Party (PD), which holds a majority in Parliament, of paralyzing the functions of the legislature. He also stressed that the PD’s rush to achieve early elections responds to the fact that its leader, Lee Jae-myung, could soon be disqualified as a presidential candidate if the Supreme Court upholds a conviction against him for violating the electoral law.
He also warned that giving the Government to the PD is allowing the “forces that are leading the paralysis of the State to take control of the State” and considered that with the opposition party in power, known for being suspicious of alliances with Tokyo and Washington , “the alliance between the Republic of Korea (official name of the country), the US and Japan will fall apart again.”
Yoon closed his speech by assuring that he “will fight until the last moment alongside the people.”
Han Dong-hoon supports the motion
The leader of the ruling People’s Power Party (PPP), Han Dong-hoon, gave his support this Thursday to the motion that will be voted on Saturday to remove Yoon Suk-yeol for declaring martial law last week.
The leadership of the country must be “clarified” and Yoon’s functions “suspended through the impeachment process.” Our party must support impeachment as his policy,” Han said in statements to the media in front of the National Assembly (Parliament) minutes before Yoon made his controversial speech defending his decision on December 3.
Almost 75% of South Koreans call for resignation or dismissal
Near the 75% of South Koreans support the immediate resignation or impeachment of the president Yoon, a survey showed this Thursday. The survey, carried out by the company Realmeter among half a thousand people over 18 years of age on Wednesday, indicates that 74.8% of those surveyed support the immediate dismissal of Yoon, while 16.2% defend an “orderly” resignation. , like the one that had initially been proposed by the ruling party.
In the survey, 66.2% also said they were experiencing stress or trauma as a result of the turmoil following the imposition of martial law, in a survey with a 95% confidence level.
According to another poll last Monday, Yoon’s popular approval fell to 17.3%, and remains at historic lows.
