Yoon's address draws criticism

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol said on Thursday his martial law decree was "an act of governance" and accused the opposition of paralyzing state affairs, drawing fresh criticism and adding new uncertainty to the upcoming impeachment vote this weekend.

In a televised address, Yoon said the opposition was the one that paralyzed the government and threatened national security. He said the opposition has been abusing impeachment provisions and thwarting him and other top officials since he took office because they refused to accept the result of the presidential election in 2022.

He said he used his presidential powers to declare martial law to protect the nation and normalize the functioning of the state.

Describing the opposition as "anti-national forces", Yoon said he would fight till the last moment.

"Whether it is impeachment or investigation, I will stand up to it," said Yoon, adding he will not avoid legal and political responsibility regarding the martial law decree.

Later on Thursday, South Korea's opposition parties submitted a second impeachment motion against Yoon over his martial law declaration, according to multiple media outlets.

The main liberal opposition Democratic Party, or DP, and five other minor parties submitted the motion after the first one was scrapped on Dec 7 as the ruling People Power Party, or PPP, lawmakers boycotted a vote.

The opposition bloc planned to report the motion to a plenary session of the National Assembly on Friday and put it up for a vote on Saturday afternoon.

Yoon's speech received mixed reactions. PPP leader Han Dong-hoon said the party's lawmakers should take part in the next impeachment vote to stop further confusion, according to Yonhap News Agency. He also ordered party members to hold an emergency meeting to discuss the expulsion of Yoon from the party.

However, PPP's newly elected floor leader Kweon Seong-dong, a key confidant of Yoon, said the party is still against the impeachment motion but there will be a meeting of lawmakers to discuss whether to change the stance.

DP said Yoon's speech is equivalent to "declaring war on the people and the National Assembly".

'Unacceptable' intention

National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik, who is aligned with the DP, said Yoon's purported intention to use the martial law declaration as a warning to the National Assembly is unacceptable.

"I suggest that the ruling and the opposition parties hold a meeting immediately," said Woo. "We need to clear up national instability as soon as possible."

Refuting Yoon's suspicions of election fraud, the National Election Commission said in a statement that the allegations are baseless.

During the martial law decree last week, about 300 troops were sent to several election offices, and the election watchdog said Yoon's address proved the troop deployment was "unconstitutional and unlawful".

The National Assembly passed bills on Thursday to investigate Yoon's insurrection charge and scandals involving first lady Kim Keon-hee.

South Korean law gives a president immunity from prosecution while in office, except for allegations of rebellion or treason. This means that Yoon can be questioned and detained by investigative agencies over his martial law decree, but many observers doubt that authorities will forcefully detain him because of the potential for clashes with his presidential security service.

The new impeachment vote at the National Assembly on Saturday requires a two-thirds majority in the 300-seat parliament to pass.

If the motion is passed, the constitutional court will deliberate it for up to 180 days, during which Yoon's presidential power will be suspended.

The opposition bloc originally held 192 of the 300 seats, but Cho Kuk, leader of Rebuilding Korea Party, lost his parliamentary seat on Thursday after he was sentenced to a two-year prison term by the Supreme Court.

Cho was convicted of charges including academic fraud involving his children. He also lost his right to run in presidential elections for five years, which means he cannot participate in the next presidential election if the court decides to impeach Yoon.

Cho's party said it plans to hand over the proportional representation seat, which can still be held by the party, as soon as possible to the next in line so the successor can participate in the impeachment vote in time.

In a survey released by pollster Realmeter on Thursday, 74.8 percent of the respondents said the president should be suspended immediately by resignation or impeachment and 16.2 percent of people said Yoon should resign in an orderly manner as proposed by the ruling party.

Xinhua and agencies contributed to this story.

kelly@chinadailyapac.com