South Korean president's midnight power grab ends in embarrassing 6-hour defeat

Last summer‚ when legislator Kim Min-seok raised concerns about martial-law plans nobody took it serious. Yoon Suk-yeolʼs approval rating was low (around 20%) and he made some hard-line moves but nobody expected what happened next

On dec 3rd late evening Yoon shocked the nation with an un-expected announcement: martial law was coming into effect. He called the opposition party a “monster destroying democracy“ and blamed them for bringing too many impeachments against his staff-members

The military showed up quick – armored cars and choppers appeared in Seoulʼs streets (which reminded many people of the dark times in late 70s when similar events led to mass-killings in Gwangju). Gen Park An-soo got picked to lead the martial-law command and started giving orders right-away

• All political activities stopped
• Media under strict control
• No public meetings allowed

But Yoonʼs attempt at taking control was super-messy. The internet stayed on TV cameras kept working and opposition leaders used social-media freely to call for protests. The soldiers didnt seem too excited about using force against regular people

The National Assembly can end martial law with a majority vote

In a night full of drama Lee Jae-myung climbed over walls while others fought their way through. About 190 lawmakers made it inside – including 18 from Yoons own party. They voted to end martial law at 1:01 am while special forces tried breaking windows; legislative workers pushed them back with fire-extinguishers

By early morning Yoon had to give up. His failed power-grab lasted just 6 hours showing how strong South-Koreas democracy has become. Now he might not finish his term that goes until 2027 – the opposition wants him to quit or face impeachment. Its another big hit for right-wing politics in the country after their previous leader got impeached about 7 years ago