South Korean political crisis deepens as second leader impeached within two weeks

Dec. 27, 2024

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) - South Korea sank deeper into political instability on Friday as lawmakers voted to impeach Acting President Han Duck-soo.

This marks the second impeachment of a head of state in just two weeks and the first-ever impeachment of an acting president in the country's history.

The South Korean National Assembly voted unanimously, 192 votes, for impeaching Han, who had undertaken leadership only two weeks ago after the suspension of President Yoon Suk Yeol over his controversial Dec. 3 martial law declaration.

The impeachment motion accused Han of rejecting to finalize Yoon's impeachment process and refusing the appointment of three Constitutional Court judges needed for reviewing the original impeachment case.

The opposition contended that Han's actions violated his constitutional duties as a public official.

Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok has been appointed as the new acting president amid the intensifying crisis.

In his first address, Choi underlined the significance of curtailing governmental turmoil and promised to commit toward prevailing over the current political instability.

The crisis has started to affect South Korea's economy, with the won touching a 16-year low against the US dollar on Friday, performing worse than during the immediate aftermath of Yoon's martial law declaration.

On Friday, in spite of the ongoing controversy, the Constitutional Court, currently operating with only six of its nine seats filled, held its first preliminary hearing concerning President Yoon's impeachment.

Police have also carried out a raid on a presidential safe house and are gathering security camera footage as part of their martial law investigation.

The ruling People's Power Party (PPP) boycotted the impeachment vote and staged protests in parliament, contending against Speaker Woo Won-shik's decision that only a simple majority was required for the impeachment to pass.