SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will address the nation on Saturday morning, his office said, ahead of a planned impeachment vote over his attempt this week to impose martial law.
The speech would be the embattled leader’s first public appearance since he rescinded the martial law order early on Wednesday just six hours after it was declared, after parliament defied military and police cordons to vote against the decree.
On Friday the leader of Yoon’s own People Power Party said the president was a danger to the country and needed to be removed from power, increasing the pressure on him to quit even though PPP members later reaffirmed its formal opposition to his impeachment.
Lawmakers will vote on the main opposition Democratic Party’s motion to impeach Yoon, who shocked the nation late on Tuesday when he gave the military sweeping emergency powers in order to root out what he called “anti-state forces” and overcome obstructionist political opponents.
Some PPP members urged Yoon to resign before the vote, saying they did not want a repeat of the 2016 impeachment of then-President Park Geun-hye, who left office following months of candlelit protests over an influence-peddling scandal. Her downfall triggered the implosion of the party and a victory by liberals in presidential and general elections.
In scenes reminiscent of those protests, thousands of demonstrators holding candles assembled outside parliament on Friday night demanding Yoon’s impeachment.
More demonstrations are expected on Saturday ahead of the vote.
Prosecutors, the police and the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials have all launched probes into Yoon and senior officials involved in the martial law decree, seeking to pursue charges of insurrection and abuse of power, among others.
(Reporting by Cynthia Kim; Editing by Leslie Adler and Sandra Maler)
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