What is the fuse for observing the "state of emergency"?
Some analyses suggest that the recent push by the South Korean opposition to promote a series of legislation targeting President Yoon Suk-yeol's wife and the impeachment of prosecutors and other public officials may be the trigger for Yoon Suk-yeol's announcement of a "state of emergency".
According to the Korean Central News Agency, the South Korean National Assembly's Special Committee on Budget and Settlement held a plenary meeting on November 29, where it passed a budget reduction proposal in the absence of ruling party People Power Party members. It is the first time in the constitutional history of South Korea that the opposition has handled the budget alone. The budget passed that day was 4.1 trillion won less than the government's submitted budget of 677.4 trillion won. The reduced portions included special activity funds for the President's Office and the National Security Office, as well as specific project funds and special activity funds for the prosecution and the Board of Audit and Inspection.