After President Yoon Suk Yeol's ill-fated declaration of martial law, the impeachment vote initiated against him in the national assembly failed as the ruling party boycotted the vote.
With the ruling party walking out, the national assembly did not have the required number of votes- 200.
“With a total of 195 votes, the number of members who voted did not reach the required two-thirds majority of the total members,” the national assembly speaker, Woo Won-shik, said. “Therefore, I declare that the vote on this matter is not valid.”
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However, the opposition Democratic Party said that they will propose a new impeachment bill against the president on 11 December.
In a surprise move, Yeol on Tuesday declared an emergency martial law accusing the opposition of controlling the parliament. However, the law lasted only six hours before it was overturned by MPs in the early hours of Wednesday.
Meanwhile, South Korea ruling party leader Han said that the president effectively agreed to depart early from office.
The opposition parties who brought the impeachment motion had 192 seats, but only three lawmakers from the PPP participated in the vote. The motion was scrapped without ballot counting.
The failure to hold a qualified vote on this matter means we were not even able to exercise the democratic procedure of deciding on a critical national issue, said Woo Won-Shik.
If Yoon is impeached, his powers will be suspended until the Constitutional Court decides whether to remove him from office. An election will occur within 60 days if Yoon is removed from office.
On Saturday, Yoon issued a public apology over the declaration of martial law. He promised not to make another attempt to impose martial law.
The declaration of this martial law was made out of my desperation. However, in the course of its implementation, it caused anxiety and inconveniences to the public. I feel very sorry over that and truly apologise to the people who must have been shocked a lot, Yoon said.
With an opposition-controlled parliament, Yoon has struggled to push his agenda since 2022.
Hundreds of people gathered outside the national assembly, shouting slogans for Yoon's ouster.
The Defence Ministry said Friday it suspended three military commanders including the head of the defence counterintelligence unit over their involvement in enforcing martial law. Defence Minister Kim Yong Hyun resigned on Thursday after allegations were made that he recommended the president to enforce the martial law.