South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared a “martial emergency” on Tuesday, accusing the country’s opposition of controlling parliament, sympathizing with North Korea and paralyzing the government with anti-state activities.
“To protect a liberal South Korea from the threats of the North Korean communist forces and to eliminate anti-state elements… I hereby declare a state of emergency,” Yoon said in a live televised address to the country.
“Without regard to the livelihood of the people, the opposition party has paralyzed the administration solely for the sake of impeachment, special investigations and shielding their leader from justice,” he added.
South Korea’s National Assembly was closed on Tuesday after Yoon’s statement, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported. Helicopters were seen landing on the roof of the building in Seoul, on live television footage broadcast by broadcasters.
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Yoon did not say what specific measures would be taken, the BBC reported, but martial law commander Park An-su said in a statement that all political activities are banned and all media will be subject to government supervision.
“All political activities, including those of the National Assembly, local councils, political parties and political associations, as well as meetings and demonstrations, are strictly prohibited,” he said, adding: “All media and publications will be subject to the control of the Martial Law Command.”
Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung, who narrowly lost to Yoon in the 2022 presidential election, called Yoon’s announcement “illegal and unconstitutional.”
The surprise move comes as Yoon’s People Power Party and the main opposition Democratic Party continue to bicker over next year’s budget law. Opposition lawmakers approved a significantly scaled-down budget plan through a parliamentary committee last week.
“Our National Assembly has become a haven for criminals, a den of legislative dictatorship aimed at paralyzing the judicial and administrative systems and overthrowing our liberal democratic order,” Yoon said.
Yoon – whose popularity has fallen in recent months – has struggled to push his agenda against an opposition-controlled parliament since taking office in 2022.
Yoon’s conservative People Power Party was locked in a standoff with the liberal opposition Democratic Party over next year’s budget law. He has also rejected calls for independent investigations into scandals involving his wife and top officials, drawing swift, strong rebukes from his political rivals.
The Democratic Party has reportedly called an emergency meeting of its lawmakers following Yoon’s announcement.
Yoon accused opposition lawmakers of cutting “all important budgets that are essential to the country’s core functions, such as combating drug crimes and maintaining public security… leaving the country in a drug haven and a state of chaos at the field of public safety has changed.”
Ahn Young-joon / AP
Yoon then labeled the opposition, which has a majority in the 300-member parliament, as “anti-state forces seeking to overthrow the regime” and called his decision “inevitable.”
“I will return the country to normal by eliminating anti-state forces as quickly as possible.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
