South Korea: Lawmakers impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol

The European Union has called for a swift resolution to the political turmoil that has rocked South Korea since Yoon Suk Yeol attempted to impose martial law almost two weeks ago.

"The EU takes note of the decision by the National Assembly to impeach President Yoon Seok Yul. It is important now to ensure a swift and orderly resolution of the current political crisis in line with the Korean constitution," EU spokesperson Anitta Hipper said in a statement.

Protesters who have been backing Yoon Suk Yeol's impeachment celebrated near the parliament building after hearing the news, waving colorful light sticks and playing upbeat music.

Many wore clothes decorated with Christmas decorations and Santa Outfits, as well as colorful K-pop light sticks normally reserved for concerts.

The AFP news agency spoke to one of the protesters, Choi Jung-ha, 52, as she danced in the street after the vote. 

"Isn't it amazing that we, the people, have pulled this off together?" she said.

"I am 100 percent certain the Constitutional Court will side with the impeachment."

On the other side of Seoul, near Gwanghwamun Square, police estimated that some 30,000 had gathered in support of the impeached president.

The acting defense minister of South Korea has urged the military to maintain preparedness, his ministry said on Saturday.

Kim Seon-ho ordered commanding officers to work swiftly to stabilize troop commands, the ministry said in a statement after the country's parliament voted to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol.

The impeached South Korean president has issued a statement saying he would "never give up" and calling for officials to maintain stability.

Yoon Suk Yeol described the latest scenario as a "temporary" pause of his presidency.

"Holding in my heart all the criticism, encouragement, and support directed at me, I will do my best for the country until the very last moment," he said.

South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo has vowed to "ensure stable governance" after the National Assembly voted to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol.

Han promised to do his best to run the government stably after the impeachment.

"My heart is very heavy," Han, who becomes acting president as Yoon's presidential powers are suspended, told reporters after the vote.

"I will devote all my strength and efforts to ensure stable governance," he added.

South Korea's opposition Democratic Party has celebrated after the successful motion to impeach Yoon.

"Today's impeachment is the great victory of the people," Democratic Party floor leader Park Chan-dae said following the vote.

Once the copies of the impeachment document are delivered to Yoon and to the Constitutional Court, his presidential powers and duties will be suspended.

The court now has 180 days to decide on Yoon's political fate.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo has become South Korea's acting president.

Parliament speaker Woo Won Shik urged the government and parliament to work together to stabilize the economy and foreign affairs.

Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok will convene an emergency meeting on the economy on Sunday.

South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol has been impeached.

A total of 204 lawmakers voted to support the motion, the speaker said.

Meanwhile, 85 lawmakers voted against the motion and three abstained. A further eight votes were nullified.

All 300 members of parliament participated in the vote. It comes after members of Yoon's ruling People Power Party walked out of the first impeachment vote last week.

Yoon Suk Yeol's ruling People Power Party (PPP) is likely to join the impeachment vote against him after walking out of last week's impeachment vote, Yonhap news agency reported.

The party has held internal meetings with party chief Han Dong-hoon and floor leader Kweon Seong-dong. 

Party member Cho Kyung-tae told the media that members were in favor of participating in the vote, but remained divided on whether to vote for or against the impeachment motion.

"There is a stark difference in stance between those who approve and those who disapprove," Cho said.

The party has, however, has officially maintained to vote against Yoon's impeachment on Saturday, according to local media reports.

South Korean lawmakers have formally begun deliberations on whether to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol.

Speaker Woo Won Shik urged all lawmakers to join the vote.

Thousands of people gathered in South Korea's capital and demonstrated hours ahead of an impeachment vote against President Yoon Suk Yeol. 

The protests demanding Yoon's removal began around midday outside the National Assembly. 

A Seoul police official told the AFP news agency that they expected at least 200,000 people to demonstrate in support of removing him.

"If Yoon isn't impeached today, I'll return next week," one protester told AFP.

However, Seoul also saw people gathering in support of Yoon. Near Gwanghwamun Square, thousands rallied in support of Yoon, singing patriotic songs and waving South Korean and American flags.

"Yoon had no choice but to declare martial law. I approve of every decision he has made as president," a pro-Yoon demonstrator told AFP.

The second attempt to impeach South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol comes after last week's attempt to remove Yoon for the martial law debacle failed.

Two hundred votes are needed for the impeachment to pass, which would require members of the opposition to convince eight members of Yoon's conservative People Power Party (PPP) to vote for his removal.

If the impeachment motion against Yoon is passed by the National Assembly, which will vote at 4:00 pm (0700 GMT) on Saturday, Yoon will need to vacate the office while South Korea's Constitutional Court would deliberate.

In the meantime, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo would step in as the interim president.

The court would then decide on Yoon's future within 180 days. If it decides in favor of his removal, then Yoon would become the second president in South Korean history to be successfully impeached.

However, notably, there has been a precedent when the court blocked an impeachment vote. In 2004, then-president Roh Moo-hyun was removed by the parliament but the Constitutional Court did not back his removal.

The court currently only has six judges which means their decision must be unanimous.

rc, mf/zc (AFP, Reuters, AP)