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350k South Koreans expected to rally as Yoon’s impeachment verdict nears
SEOUL – Hundreds of thousands of South Koreans are set to gather in Seoul in one of the largest protests since President Yoon Suk Yeol was impeached for his martial law declaration, as judges enter the final stretch of their deliberations on whether to confirm his ouster or reinstate him.
The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency expects some 350,000 people to amass across the capital on March 1, according to its website. Groups leading the protests have reported to the police that they plan to march near some of Seoul’s landmarks, including the Gwanghwamun square and the National Assembly.
South Korea has been divided for months over Mr Yoon’s unexpected martial law imposition which led to his suspension from office. Rallies have occurred in Seoul almost every weekend either for or against him since the Constitutional Court began to examine a parliamentary motion that impeached him in December.
Mr Yoon, 64, denied wrongdoing over the course of 11 hearings that ended this week, defending his move as a desperate bid to deal with North Korea sympathisers trying to paralyse his administration. He contended his deployment of troops to the National Assembly on Dec 3, 2024 was to ensure peace and order rather than to block lawmakers from voting to annul the martial law.
The opposition-controlled parliament accused Mr Yoon of abusing power and the anti-corruption agency arrested him in January, making him the first sitting South Korean president to be taken into custody.
While most rallies have been peaceful, violence erupted in January when a mob broke into a court that extended Mr Yoon’s arrest. Some climbed over the wall and others broke barricades to make their way into the Seoul Western District Court.
The political tension that has weighed on consumer and business sentiment is likely to last until the Constitutional Court reaches its conclusion, which analysts expect in mid-March.
“While we are of the view that any removal of uncertainty should help sentiment recover, we remain watchful given the highly volatile nature of the situation,” Dr Jin Choi, an HSBC Bank economist, said in a note.
Should the Constitutional Court decide to remove Mr Yoon from office, a snap election will be held within 60 days. For now, Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok is holding the government together as acting president after Mr Yoon was impeached and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo was suspended from office for refusing to comply with an opposition demand to quickly appoint constitutional judges.
The leadership vacuum has undermined the export-reliant country’s ability to effectively negotiate with US President Donald Trump, who threatens to impose tariffs on trading partners.
Mr Yoon came to power in 2022 on a platform that included closer relations with the US and a tougher stance on North Korea. A former prosecutor who led high-profile corruption investigations, he narrowly defeated Mr Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party, which traditionally promotes greater wealth equality and more efforts for dialogue with Pyongyang.
BLOOMBERG