South Korea’s opposition leader asked the Constitutional Court on Sunday to quickly rule on an attempt to oust President Eun Suk-yeol, a day after parliament voted to impeach him in a short-lived attempt to impose martial law.
Yoon’s powers will be suspended until the court removes Yoon from office in the case or restores his powers. The court has up to 180 days to make a decision, and if he is dismissed, national elections must be held within 60 days to choose his successor.
Prime Minister Han Deok-soo, the country’s No. 2 official, assumed presidential powers later Saturday. Han was appointed by Yun, whose government is struggling to pass legislation in the opposition-controlled parliament.
Lee Jae-myung, leader of the opposition Democratic Party, told reporters on Sunday that the only way to ease the national chaos was a quick ruling.
Lee also proposed the formation of a National Council, where the government and the National Assembly would work together to stabilize state affairs. He said high-level diplomacy and bilateral cooperation are needed to navigate the political paralysis that has crippled financial markets since the UN’s martial law decree.
Lee also said the Democratic Party would not seek to impeach Han, despite some calls for his alleged inaction to stop Yun’s implementation of martial law. Lee said there was no need to introduce more political uncertainty.
“The Democratic Party will actively cooperate with all parties to restore stability and international trust in state affairs,” Lee said. “The National Assembly and the government will work together to quickly resolve the crisis in the Republic of Korea.”
Yun’s Dec. 3 imposition of martial law, the first of its kind in more than four decades, lasted only six hours, but has caused major political upheaval, halted diplomatic activity and roiled financial markets. Yun was forced to withdraw his decree after parliament voted unanimously to overturn it.
Yun sent hundreds of military and police officers to parliament to block the vote, but they withdrew after parliament rejected Yun’s orders. There was no major violence.
Opposition parties have accused Yoon of rebellion, and in South Korea the president is only allowed to declare martial law in times of war or similar emergencies, and even then has no power to suspend parliament.
The conservative Yun denies the accusations and says he intended to issue a warning to the Democratic Party, which he calls an “anti-state force” because it has used control of parliament to impeach several top officials and block the government’s budget bill. next year
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