South Korean parliament defies military to end emergency

South Korean President Jun Suk Jeol announced the state of emergency on Tuesday evening local time, accusing the opposition of sympathizing with North Korea and paralyzing government operations.

The decision to introduce the state of emergency was shocking not only to the opposition but also to the ruling party. According to South Korean media, many in the president's close circle were unaware of his plans.

According to the South Korean constitution, the president is obliged to inform the National Assembly of his decision. The Assembly can either accept it or adopt a resolution calling for the repeal of the state of emergency.

Just before midnight, an extraordinary session of parliament was convened. Unfortunately, many lawmakers had difficulty reaching it. The National Assembly buildings were surrounded by the military and police. Soldiers even attempted to storm the building where the session was to take place.

However, access was defended by a crowd of protesting Koreans and the marshal's guard. The protesters helped the lawmakers make their way through the barricades to attend the session.

One of them, Li Sung Yun, from the main opposition party, told the BBC that he had to climb a fence about 5 feet high to get into the parliament building, as the police blocked his entrance, despite showing his parliamentary ID.

Just before midnight local time, the resolution calling for the lifting of the state of emergency was adopted with the presence of 190 out of 300 National Assembly deputies. All present voted "yes." Among them were 18 representatives from the ruling People Power Party, from the faction of party leader Han Dong Hun, and 172 opposition lawmakers.

As emphasized by Korean media, this resolution was adopted just 150 minutes after the president announced the state of emergency.

The chairman of the National Assembly, Wu Won Sik, stated that "based on the National Assembly's request, the president should immediately lift the state of emergency," adding that his "declaration is now null and void."

Article 77, Section 5 of the Constitution of the Republic of Korea states that "if the National Assembly requests the lifting of the state of emergency by a majority of the total number of National Assembly members, the president must comply with this request." The issue is that the constitution does not specify how much time he has to repeal his decision.

It was unclear how Jun would proceed, as on Tuesday, the chief of the general staff of South Korea's armed forces, Park An Su, announced "a ban on activities of parliament, political parties, and all political activities."

Ultimately, in the middle of the night, the country's president declared that he would lift the state of emergency.

After the vote, local television stations showed soldiers withdrawing from the building. Some, however, remained on the grounds of the parliament, reported by the "Chosun Ilbo" newspaper.

According to this newspaper, a crowd gathered in front of the parliament's entrance cheered at the news of the vote's outcome. They chanted slogans calling for President Jun's resignation and arrest.

Source: PAP, chosun.com, cnn.com, yna.co.kr