Washington, (APP – UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News – 4th Dec, 2024) South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s brief imposition of martial law marks a new warning for the worldwide fragility of democracy, even in a country hailed as a model of political transformation.
Yoon’s overnight attempt to shut down political activity, censor media and lock out opposition lawmakers stunned South Korea’s longtime ally, the United States, which said it had no advance warning and issued a statement of concern.
South Korea’s transition to elected rule since a mass uprising in 1987 had been seen as so thorough that the United States increasingly spoke of its ally as a global partner. Meanwhile, Seoul billed itself as a new, ideal hub for international media as China clamped down on Hong Kong.
President Joe Biden had even chosen Yoon as the host in March of his final Summit for Democracy — a signature initiative of the outgoing US leader, who sought to champion liberal values globally, in an unstated repudiation of Donald Trump, who returns to the White House next month.
But observers, while stunned by Yoon, said there were warning signs.
Danny Russel, a top US diplomat for Asia under former president Barack Obama and who earlier served in South Korea, pointed to the deadlock in parliament where the opposition repeatedly sought impeachments against Yoon’s administration.
Yoon’s move “was a complete surprise to me (but) yes, there were very obvious structural forces at work,” he said.
“There is a radically polarized political scene in Korea. The opposition has been pursuing scorched-earth political obstruction tactics,” he said.
But he pointed to the quick, large-scale protests that erupted after Yoon’s declaration as a sign of a vibrant civil society ready to defend democracy.
“One certainly would hope that this would serve as a wake-up call to both the ruling conservative party and the progressive opposition that both sides have gone too far and that there needs to be some process of reconciliation, of dealing with legitimate differences and grievances.”
