'It’s a knife dance’: South Korea’s Yoon defiant amid pressure to quit ahead of second impeachment move

Embattled South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol made a surprise appearance on television on Thursday, rejecting calls from his party and the Opposition for stepping down. This came amid increasing chances of him being impeached in the second move, having survived the first motion in the South Korean parliament last week.

Yoon blamed the main Opposition Democratic Party for his decision to declare martial law in the country last week.

“I will confront it confidently, whether it’s impeachment or investigation,” Yoon said, expressing that he has no intention to resign from his office despite several ongoing probes into his short-lived martial law.

“I will fight to the end,” the South Korean President said.

Yoon and his allies are currently facing investigations on insurrection charges, and a travel ban has been imposed on several of them.

‘Opposition creating false incitement’

Despite this, Yoon remained firm that his martial law order was not an act of insurrection and claimed that his political rivals were creating “false incitement” to bring him down.

Intensifying his attack on the Opposition, Yoon claimed that Democratic Party was the reason he briefly declared martial law.

“The opposition party performs a knife dance, calling martial law an insurrection,” he said.

“They have paralysed the country’s politics by abusing impeachment,” Yoon alleged.

Yoon also claimed he would not avoid his “legal and political responsibilities”.

Yoon’s own party wants him to step down

Last Saturday, an attempt by opposition lawmakers to impeach Yoon failed, after members of his own ruling party - ruling People Power Party - boycotted the vote. The Opposition lawmakers, however, are set to hold another impeachment vote this weekend and have vowed to hold one every Saturday until Yoon is removed from office.

Meanwhile, Yoon’s party has been trying to convince him to leave office early, rather than force him out.

Moments before Yoon’s address, leader of his party, Han Dong Hoon, appeared on television saying it had become clear that the president was not going to step aside. He then urged the party members to vote to remove him from office this Saturday.

“I trust that our party lawmakers will vote for the country and the public,” Han said.
Talking to reporters, Han said he had sought an alternative way for Yoon to leave office other than impeachment, but such a path has not come to fruition.

Asked if he favoured impeachment, Han responded, “Yes, there is no other method.”

Han and Yoon were close associates but the bond between the two soured over the past months after Han supported a probe into allegations of influence peddling involving Yoon’s wife, Kim Keon Hee.

Meanwhile, data released on Thursday by RealMeter show 74.8 per cent of respondents wanting Yoon to either promptly resign or be impeached.

If the South Korean parliament passes an impeachment bill, a trial would be held by a constitutional court. Two-thirds of that court would have to sustain the majority for the president to be removed from office. This would pave the way for holding fresh elections within 60 days.

With inputs from agencies.