South Korea's President Yoon removed from office

The Constitutional Court in Seoul confirmed the motion previously passed by parliament to remove the right-wing conservative politician from office. The country is now facing new elections.

The court justified its unanimous decision by stating that Yoon should not have imposed martial law because there was no national crisis. He had also violated the law by ordering soldiers to the National Assembly in order to prevent parliament from lifting martial law.

Yoon's actions plunged the country into crisis

The four-month-long national crisis began in the evening hours of December 3, when Yoon unexpectedly declared martial law at short notice. The background to this was a budget dispute with the opposition parties, who had largely blocked his proposed legislation. Yoon justified his martial law decision by accusing the left-wing opposition of being anti-state and infiltrated by communist forces, among other things. There is no evidence of this.

Shortly after martial law was imposed, the 64-year-old head of state sent soldiers to the parliament in Seoul to completely seal off the building. According to several high-ranking military and police officers, Yoon also ordered the soldiers to specifically arrest members of parliament. Yoon himself denies the accusation. Despite the military presence, the members of parliament managed to gather in the National Assembly during this exceptional situation and, in a hastily convened vote, lift the martial law that had been imposed a few hours earlier.

Prime Minister Han Duck Soo is currently acting as interim president. Han was also suspended in the meantime following a vote in the National Assembly, but was able to return to office in March following a ruling by the Constitutional Court.

Following the confirmation of Yoon's impeachment in the last instance, which was decided by parliament on December 14, new elections must now be held within 60 days. According to current polls, the most promising candidate is left-wing opposition leader Lee Jae Myung, who ran against Yoon in the 2022 presidential election and was only narrowly defeated.

State crisis weighs on South Korea's economy

The ongoing state crisis has not only damaged the political reputation of the democratic Republic of South Korea, but has also severely slowed down the economy. The central bank in Seoul has repeatedly revised its growth forecast for gross domestic product downwards in recent months, which is largely due to the political events. Foreign companies have been very reluctant to invest due to the power vacuum and lack of predictability.

It remains to be seen whether the country will now return to calmer waters following the Supreme Court ruling. On the one hand, the political rifts in South Korea's already polarized society have recently deepened. On the other hand, there are fears that Yoon's supporters will not accept the Constitutional Court's ruling and could possibly put up tumultuous resistance.

Police fear violent riots

Since the beginning of the national crisis in December, there have been almost daily demonstrations, which have not always remained peaceful. In January, for example, angry supporters of Yoon stormed a courthouse in Seoul. The rioters attacked police officers with bricks and steel pipes, and 17 officers were injured during the riots.

The area around the Constitutional Court was cordoned off on Friday. More than 14,000 police officers were deployed in Seoul to prevent violent riots.

For former public prosecutor Yoon, the legal disputes are not over even after the latest verdict. He still has to answer for his actions in a criminal trial. The public prosecutor's office accuses him of sedition and abuse of power, among other things. If found guilty, Yoon would face a life sentence.