Foreign Media: "Yoon is a Conflict Instigator... He Himself Provided the 'Impeachment Smoking Gun'"

As the impeachment motion against President Yoon Suk-yeol passed the National Assembly after a re-vote on the 14th, major international media outlets analyzed that President Yoon had brought about his own downfall by fomenting conflict since the election. It was pointed out that when the 'gamble' of martial law failed, the youth, who had experienced the Sewol ferry disaster and the Itaewon tragedy, poured into the streets, causing a backlash. Foreign media predicted that political uncertainty in South Korea would continue for the time being despite the passage of the impeachment motion.

Participants gathered in front of the National Assembly building in Yeouido, Seoul, are cheering immediately after the impeachment motion against President Yoon Suk-yeol was passed in the second impeachment vote. Photo by Heo Young-han

The British daily The Guardian, in an explanatory article titled "How the South Korean President Sealed His Own Downfall," analyzed that "the declaration of martial law was not just a fatal miscalculation but the climax of a presidency that had faced difficulties from the start." It evaluated President Yoon as a 'divisive figure' who had shown authoritarian tendencies from the beginning of his term. During the presidential election, he pledged to abolish the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, gaining support from male voters in their 20s and 30s, and after his victory, he issued an official warning against a high school student's satirical comic work 'Yoon Suk-yeol Car' that mocked his government. Furthermore, in his 2022 Liberation Day speech, he mentioned 'freedom' 33 times, while simultaneously filing lawsuits against unfavorable media reports, showing a dual nature.

There was also analysis that the issue of First Lady Kim Geon-hee was a burden during President Yoon's term. As she became embroiled in various scandals, including receiving a Dior bag and stock manipulation allegations, President Yoon's approval ratings continuously declined.

In response, the ruling party, the People Power Party, offered an opportunity for a 'dignified resignation,' but President Yoon rejected it and chose to increase the stakes of the martial law gamble, thus bringing about his own downfall. After the first impeachment vote failed on the 7th, while the People Power Party sought to manage state affairs on the premise of an orderly resignation, President Yoon justified martial law as a legitimate governing act and took a hardline stance, which proved fatal. The Guardian pointed out that President Yoon's approval rating subsequently plummeted to 11%, and even conservative media turned their backs on him.

It added, "Opposition figures such as Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party, who face their own controversies and legal risks, were not the ones who decided President Yoon's fate; it was his own actions," diagnosing that "the martial law gamble ultimately provided the opposition with the 'smoking gun'?the decisive evidence they had long sought for impeachment."

Speaker Woo Won-shik is announcing the passage of the impeachment motion against President Yoon Seok-yeol at the 4th plenary session of the 419th National Assembly (extraordinary session) held at the National Assembly on the 14th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min

The New York Times (NYT) also evaluated that President Yoon's term was marked by continuous protests and political deadlock. The handling of the Itaewon tragedy in October 2022 dealt a blow to the administration, and the youth who experienced the Sewol ferry and Itaewon disasters became the main force behind the impeachment protests. It also analyzed that much of the political crisis, including allegations of receiving luxury bags and interference in state affairs and personnel, was triggered by the First Lady Kim's issues.

Foreign media also pointed out that political uncertainty in South Korea has not been resolved despite the passage of the impeachment motion. The NYT noted that South Korea's political turmoil is far from over, and in a situation of increasing domestic and international uncertainty, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who is not an elected official and lacks political weight, will lead South Korea as acting president. The BBC mentioned that both Prime Minister Han and Choi Sang-mok, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, who is second in line as acting president, are under investigation related to martial law.

Foreign media including the BBC also mentioned that although President Yoon, as a prosecutor in 2017, contributed to bringing down former President Park Geun-hye through the state corruption investigation, he himself faced the same fate due to his coercive and undemocratic response to opposition forces.