South Korea's parliament voted to impeach acting President Han Duck-soo on Friday, accusing him of obstructing the investigation into the former president’s failed attempt to impose martial law, which plunged the country into a political crisis.
This is the first time an acting president has been impeached following the ousting of a sitting president in South Korean history. The vote took place amidst loud protests from ruling party lawmakers, who chanted and raised their fists in anger.
"Of the 192 lawmakers who voted, 192 voted for impeachment," announced National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik. Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok will now serve as the acting head of state.
On December 14, lawmakers voted to dismiss conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol, who had imposed martial law and sent the army to Parliament earlier this month, only to back down a few hours later.
Since then, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo had been acting president. The opposition accused him of refusing to fill three of the nine seats on the Constitutional Court needed to make a two-thirds majority decision on Yoon’s impeachment.
A television screen shows South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol speaking during a news broadcast in Goyang, northwest of Seoul on December 3, 2024. Credit: Jung Yeon-je / AFP / Belga
Han Duck-soo, a 75-year-old civil servant, argued that his interim status did not grant him the authority to make significant appointments. He insisted that choosing Constitutional Court judges should require an agreement between the ruling People Power Party (PPP) and opposition groups.
Despite several vacant seats, the Constitutional Court is set to hold its first hearing on Yoon Suk-Yeol’s impeachment on Friday.
If the three vacant seats are not filled before the end of the proceedings, the six remaining judges must unanimously agree to permanently remove Yoon from power. A single vote against impeachment would automatically reinstate him.
The ousted president is also under investigation for "rebellion," a crime punishable by death.
The Corruption Investigation Office, which is handling the investigations, has already summoned the former president twice to question him about the events of 3-4 December, which shocked the nation. However, Yoon failed to appear on both occasions.
Investigators sent him a third summons on Thursday for a hearing on Sunday morning.
