MARTIAL LAW: SOUTH KOREA’S PARLIAMENT VOTES TO IMPEACH YOON

SEOUL, Dec 14 (Bernama-Yonhap) -- South Korean National Assembly voted Saturday to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol over his botched imposition of martial law.

Yoon will be suspended from his duties as soon as the impeachment resolution is delivered to his office, while Prime Minister Han Duck-soo will serve as acting president, Yonhap news agency reported.

An impeachment motion against Yoon passed 204-85, with three abstentions and eight invalid ballots, with all 300 lawmakers casting their ballots.

Yoon's People Power Party (PPP) decided shortly before the proceeding to take part in the vote but oppose impeachment.

The result showed 12 PPP lawmakers broke from their party line to vote in favour of impeachment.

A two-thirds majority was required to approve the motion, with the opposition bloc accounting for 192 of the 300 members of parliament.

The first attempt to impeach Yoon last Saturday failed after nearly all PPP lawmakers boycotted the vote.

A second impeachment motion against Yoon was introduced Thursday by the main opposition Democratic Party and five other minor opposition parties, accusing him of violating the Constitution and other laws by declaring martial law on Dec 3.

The decree was lifted six hours later after the Assembly voted to repeal it.

The second motion was revised from the first motion to remove some charges against Yoon but add others, including allegations that Yoon ordered troops and the police to arrest lawmakers while martial law was in force.

The motion will now be sent to the Constitutional Court, which will decide whether to reinstate Yoon or remove him from office, according to Yonhap

If the impeachment is upheld, Yoon will become the second president to be ousted after former President Park Geun-hye in 2017.

-- BERNAMA-YONHAP