South Korea: Lawmakers vote to impeach Han Duck-soo

South Korea's parliament on Friday voted to impeach caretaker president Han Duck-soo.

The opposition Democratic Party had threatened Han unless he immediately appoints three judges to fill vacancies at the country's Constitutional Court.

What's behind the vote?

While Parliament has backed three nominees, Han — who replaced predecessor Yoon Suk Yeol — has yet to appoint them formally.

The court is investigating whether to fully remove Yoon from office over his December 3 declaration of martial law after lawmakers voted for him to be impeached.

Some 192 lawmakers voted to impeach Han out of the 300-member parliament.

Ahead of the vote, National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik said the motion to impeach Han could pass with a simple majority of 151 votes.

Opposition accuse Han of 'acting for insurrection'

Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung said his Democratic Party, which holds 170 out of 300 seats, would proceed with the plan to impeach the acting president, accusing Han of "acting for insurrection."

"The only way to normalize the country is to swiftly root out all the insurrection forces," Lee said.

Finance Minister Choi Sang Mok will assume the acting presidency. He had cautioned lawmakers not to proceed with the plan to impeach Han fearing the damage it would do to the country's economy.

"Our economy and people's livelihoods, which are walking on thin ice in a national emergency, cannot bear the expansion of political uncertainty surrounding the acting authority," he said.

The South Korean won plummeted to 1480.2 per US dollar on Friday morning, marking its lowest level in nearly 16 years. 

Ex-Defense minister indicted — report

At the same time, South Korea's Yonhap news agency on Friday reported that former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun had been indicted on insurrection charges in connection with his alleged role during the imposition of martial law.

Yonhap reported that the prosecution's special investigation team indicted Kim on charges of abuse of power and playing an "integral" role in an insurrection.

This marks the first indictment involving President Yoon Suk Yeol's short-lived declaration of martial law on December 3.

Prosecutors believe Kim recommended that martial law be declared and that he led the deployment of troops to the National Assembly and the National Election Commission's offices.

kb/rc (AFP, Reuters)