Seoul – President Yun Seok-yeol gave a televised address to the nation on Thursday morning to defend his declaration of martial law on December 3.
The 63-year-old conservative president has faced the threat of impeachment from the opposition-controlled National Assembly since he briefly imposed martial law.
Yin condemned the opposition party’s abuse of power as unconstitutional, while claiming that his use of executive power was within the constitutional framework.
“I guess I can’t wait and see anymore,” Yin said. “Martial law caught my attention.”
Yin also said that the next step of sending troops to the National Assembly to force their way into the National Assembly was not to paralyze the National Assembly.
“If I really wanted to paralyze the National Assembly, martial law would have gone into effect on weekends instead of weekdays. Also, I would have cut off electricity, water and restricted broadcasts to the National Assembly. But I did nothing.
He added that the fact that he sent fewer than 300 troops to Congress was another indication that martial law was not declared to control Congress.
Yin claimed that his purpose was to send a warning to the opposition party and make the people aware of the party’s “anti-national” activities.
Yoon accused the opposition of using its legislative power to block changes in laws that would allow punishment of foreign espionage, siding with North Korea and unilaterally cutting budget items he said were crucial to the country’s economic growth.
Yoon also revealed that he ordered then-Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun to investigate vulnerabilities in the National Election Commission after North Korea suffered a hacking attack in the second half of 2023.
Yoon said election authorities last year refused to comply with the Yoon administration’s request to inspect internal systems despite the National Intelligence Service’s disclosure of security flaws.
Yin stressed that he would face the threat of impeachment and investigation against him due to the imposition of martial law on December 3.
“Whether it’s impeachment or an investigation before me, I will face it bravely,” he said. “I have said that I will not evade legal and political responsibility.”
But Yoon added that the opposition parties are eager to impeach him while inciting and manipulating the public because they fear opposition leader Rep. Lee Jae-myung may be barred from holding public office.
Lee is facing several separate trials on charges that could result in him being barred from running for president.
The president’s impeachment could allow Lee Myung-bak to run for president earlier than the election currently scheduled for March 2027.
