In a shocking move this tuesday‚ South Korean president Yoon Suk-yeol declared martial-law trying to take control over the country‚ but his plan quickly fell apart
The National Assembly (where his party lost big in spring elections) didnt waste time and voted against this move‚ while people made human-shields between soldiers and the parliament building. Military forces mostly stepped away from confrontation which means Yoonʼs self-made crisis might end soon
Yoon used budget fights with parliament as an excuse: saying its “clear anti-state behavior“ and called opposition “pro-North forces“. His approval rating sits below 20% due to influence-trading scandal. The ruling People Power Party leader Han Dong-hoon (once Yoons friend) already said he doesnt support this move
Its almost always been about his low ratings
South Koreas protest culture is super-strong: about 44 years ago martial-law led to killings in Gwangju city‚ and 7 years back huge protests removed president Park. Now people know how to organize fast
The constitutionʼs Article 77 lets president declare martial-law but parliament can cancel it with simple vote; which they did. Army chief Park An-soo tried blocking political work and media - but nobody listened
This mess might hurt US-Japan-Korea friendship deals that Yoon helped make. American leaders wont back his power grab‚ and next SK president (coming in 2027) will need to fix damaged trust