Source: Niu Tanqin
I never expected that South Korea would change overnight; President Yoon Suk-yeol has flipped the table.
On the night of December 3rd, he suddenly announced an emergency martial law in South Korea.
A friend asked: What does martial law mean?
This is a matter involving the foundation of the nation. It involves using knives and guns to arrest and kill people. One must know that the last martial law in South Korea was over 40 years ago.
Subsequently, the South Korean army took to the streets, Seoul citizens protested, and countries around the world were shocked. But in the latter half of the night, news came from the South Korean National Assembly that the martial law order had been overturned.
Everything is thrilling; South Korea has a sleepless night.
This is a completely personal opinion; here are ten key questions.
Question one, what is the trigger?
Yoon Suk-yeol accused that the urgent martial law was a "necessary action" for the eternal Republic of Korea. He aims to eliminate the "influences from the North" and to maintain a "free constitutional order."
In other words, the opposition party is aggressive, and he can no longer remain president; a decisive battle is necessary!
But aside from these words, one undeniable factor is that Yoon Suk-yeol's anger was ignited for a beloved woman.
The trigger was the bribery case involving his wife, Kim Kyung-hee. Kim Kyung-hee received a Dior handbag, and the opposition party is seizing on it, not ruling out the possibility of her ending up in prison. Yoon Suk-yeol could no longer tolerate it and directly announced martial law.
"For the woman I love, I declare myself an enemy of the world!"
Don't think that such themes only play out in novels and on screen.
Question two, how does South Korea implement martial law?
South Korean Army General Park An-soo has been appointed as the martial law commander. The martial law command soon issued the first martial law order: martial law starts from 11 PM local time on the 3rd (10 PM Beijing time on the 3rd).
The first article of the martial law order: prohibit activities of the National Assembly and local councils, as well as political party activities, political associations, gatherings, demonstrations, and all political activities.
What is this?
Actually similar to a coup.
It's just that the president personally orchestrating a coup is truly astonishing.
More critically, on one side is the president and military leaders, and on the other side is the opposition and ruling parties.
When even the ruling party does not stand by the president, things become uncontrollable.
Question three, how do the South Korean people view this?
Shocking, shocking, still shocking.
The internal strife in South Korea is very intense; the whole world knows it, but the fact that it has escalated to the point where the supreme leader has declared martial law is still astounding.
Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung said in a live broadcast: "The martial law order is not to defend the constitution, but a fatal blow to democracy."
A large number of citizens, disregarding the martial law order, braved the severe cold to protest and prevent the military from entering the National Assembly.
Question four, what will the South Korean military do?
According to general martial law, the military must be mobilized, armed, and even gunfire may erupt.
But in South Korea, the martial law situation is very slippery.
Military orders must be executed, so special forces were deployed; however, law enforcement was excessive, and even bloodshed occurred, which will definitely be accounted for later.
Thus, we see that Yoon Suk-yeol is anxious, but the military is very relaxed, in fact, they are letting it go; a large number of lawmakers still stormed into the National Assembly, and opposition leader Lee Jae-myung, while live broadcasting, calmly climbed over the wall into the National Assembly.
Very dramatic.
Question five, how do the US and the world view this?
The attitude of the US is crucial.
The US stated, "We are closely monitoring the situation." US Deputy Secretary of State Campbell further commented: "We are hopeful that any political disputes can be resolved peacefully in accordance with the rule of law."
Looking at the international reaction, it was overwhelmingly shocked, condemned, or called for restraint, demanding dialogue to solve the problem.
This one-sidedness has further isolated Yoon Suk-yeol's government.
Question six, how does the South Korean National Assembly respond?
The National Assembly is a key force in South Korea's political arena.
Despite being obstructed, 190 lawmakers successfully entered the National Assembly, exceeding the required majority, and the voting result was 190:0, lifting the martial law order.
The once fiercely competing opposition and ruling parties at this moment set aside grudges and shook hands, unanimously agreeing that Yoon Suk-yeol's martial law order is invalid.
With the crowd turning against him, Yoon Suk-yeol has completely lost.
In the early morning of the 4th, he had to express that he was withdrawing the martial law troops and lifting the martial law order.
Question seven, were there any prior signs?
In fact, there are some.
As early as September this year, the opposition party revealed that Yoon Suk-yeol might declare martial law.
But this is considered completely absurd; at that time, the (Chosun Ilbo) even commented: Anyone with a bit of common sense would think this is nonsense. If the government issues a martial law order, no one in the military would comply, and the government would likely collapse almost simultaneously. Which government would do such a self-destructive act?
I'm sorry, the president of South Korea will.
Question eight, how will Yoon Suk-yeol end?
He is now at his most dangerous moment. He can either resign voluntarily and step down; or be impeached and ousted from the presidential office; or follow Roh Moo-hyun, close his eyes, and bid farewell to life.
As long as one is alive, the matter is not over. The final result is that he will definitely end up in prison.
Previous scandals will definitely be thoroughly investigated now; the current urgent martial law will also be fully accounted for.
Before becoming president, as the prosecutor general, Yoon Suk-yeol investigated others; now, the new prosecutor is investigating him, and even his entire family.
The price of impulsiveness.
Question nine, how do you view the Blue House curse?
The whole world knows that the most dangerous profession in South Korea is to be the president.
Anyway, among the past presidents of South Korea, except for Moon Jae-in, no president has ended well. Some have gone to prison, some have gone into exile, and some have committed suicide. This is referred to by outsiders as the "Blue House curse."
Therefore, after becoming president of South Korea, Yoon Suk-yeol resolutely refused to stay in the Blue House and forcibly took over the former Ministry of National Defense, turning it into the presidential office.
The Blue House has changed, but the curse has not been broken.
Moreover, Yoon Suk-yeol's ending might be even worse. Alas, had I known it would be like this, why would I want to be the president of South Korea!
Question ten, what will happen to Sino-Korean relations?
This is an internal affair of South Korea, which does not significantly affect Sino-Korean relations; we can just watch the drama.
After Yoon Suk-yeol took office, he has been tough on the North, flattering Japan, and following the US closely. The previously decent Sino-Korean relations have plummeted to a low point.
Who would have thought that in the end, he would come to such an end?
You see him building tall buildings, hosting guests, and then you see his building collapse.
People are acting, the heavens are watching!
Finally, some reflections: this is a historic night for South Korea. We saw anger erupt for a beloved woman, we saw live broadcasts of the wall being breached into Congress, we saw the ruling and opposition parties unite against the president, and we saw the inevitable loss of flowers. We should also see the supreme leader enter prison in shackles...
From the president issuing the martial law order to the National Assembly abolishing it, it took less than three hours.
But many people's fates have been completely changed from this point on.
No wonder Korean dramas are so exciting, because the reality in South Korea is even more thrilling!
Yoon Suk-yeol, oh Yoon Suk-yeol.