Summary (updated)
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law late Tuesday to counter “anti-state” forces, accusing opposition lawmakers of pro-North Korean sympathies.
Parliament, controlled by the opposition, quickly voted to nullify the declaration, calling it unconstitutional.
Protesters and lawmakers denounced Yoon’s move as authoritarian, echoing South Korea’s pre-democracy era.
Military personnel withdrew following the vote, and Yoon promised to lift martial law after a Cabinet meeting.
Critics warned of democratic backsliding. This marks South Korea’s first martial law declaration since democratization in 1987.
You’d think a military staffed by citizen conscripts would balk at something like this. Hopefully they hang the leaders out to dry before they decide they’ve got nothing to lose by couping.
Really, I’m more appalled at Yoon on this one. What kind of ignorant chump fails to gain the unquestionable support of the military before going all in on a military coup?
Coups are always gambles