South Korean democracy refused to be defeated. In the middle of the night from Tuesday, December 3 to Wednesday, December 4, 190 deputies from the majority and the opposition, supported by an angry crowd, gathered in front of a National Assembly surrounded by police and soldiers, unanimously rejected the martial law declared a few hours earlier. by conservative president Yoon Suk Yeol. Yoon accepted the decision and sadly put an end to his coup attempt, which made South Korea return for a few hours to the nightmare of the days of dictatorships, which he believed had passed for almost forty years.
The last time martial law was imposed was in 1980 in Gwangju (South). On the orders of authoritarian President Chun Doo-hwan (1980-1987), paratroopers violently suppressed a pro-democracy movement. The operation left hundreds dead.
Admitting defeat, Mr. Yoon reiterated his call for the National Assembly to end the activities. “scandalous” which, according to him, are paralyzing government functions. The president, faced with the demonstrations, is now threatened with dismissal. His top aides, including his chief of staff, Chung Jin-suk, and his national security adviser, Shin Won-sik, have resigned. The General Staff sent the troops back to their barracks.
The rule of law prevailed and the matter ended, without major incident, after six hours of high tensions in the South Korean capital. “We are relieved that President Yoon has retracted his statement and respected the vote of the National Assembly.Washington reacted. Democracy is the foundation of the US-South Korea alliance, and we will continue to monitor developments. »
live ammunition
Mr. Yoon declared martial law on Tuesday, December 3 at 10:25 p.m. from the presidential office in Yongsan District, Seoul. “The Republic of Korea [nom officiel de la Corée du Sud] It is like a sail in the wind; can be turned off at any time. “I declare martial law to protect you from the threats of the communist forces of North Korea, to eradicate the pro-North Korean anti-state forces that are brazenly destroying the freedom and happiness of our people, and to protect our free constitutional order.”he justified. He criticized the parliamentary opposition for opposing his draft budget and for having voted in favor of the dismissal of the director of the Audit and Inspection Council.
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