South Korean president apologises ahead of impeachment vote

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South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol issued a terse apology on Saturday morning for his failed attempt to impose martial law, ahead of an impeachment vote later today that will decide his political future.

In his first public appearance since withdrawing his martial law decree in the early hours of Wednesday morning, Yoon said in a one-minute televised address that he was “very sorry” for causing anxiety to the public.

“The martial law declaration came from a desperate president,” said Yoon, adding “the [martial law] process caused inconvenience and confusion to the people. I am deeply regretful and I sincerely apologise.”

Yoon’s remarks represent a last-ditch attempt to win over wavering members of his own party and save his presidency following a tumultuous week that showed both the endurance and the fragility of South Korean democracy.

The president insisted in his address that he would not make a second attempt to impose martial law, after the leader of his own conservative People Power party, Han Dong-hoon, warned that Yoon “could potentially put the Republic of Korea and its citizens in great danger if he is allowed to continue”.

The president did not seek to explain his actions, which included the deployment of troops to the national assembly in a botched attempt to prevent lawmakers from voting to reject the decree.

In his brief address, Yoon said he would “leave it to the ruling party to decide ways to stabilise state affairs going forward, including [until the end of] my term”.

Han told reporters immediately after Yoon’s address that “the president’s early exit is unavoidable. We are in a position where he can’t normally do his job as president.” However, he did not say whether he would vote in favour of the impeachment motion.

Yoon’s term as president is scheduled to last until 2027, but he could be suspended from office as soon as Saturday evening if the national assembly passes the impeachment motion filed by opposition parties earlier this week.

“Yoon seems totally resigned to his fate, with no fight left in him,” said Karl Friedhoff, a Korea expert at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. “Even if the impeachment vote doesn’t pass, the country will be completely rudderless. He looked like a broken man.”

South Korea’s constitution stipulates an impeachment vote must be passed by a two-thirds majority in the 300-seat National Assembly.

The country’s six opposition parties, all of which have called for Yoon’s impeachment, control 192 seats, meaning they also need at least eight members of the ruling People Power party to support the motion.

In South Korea, the president is directly elected and appoints the cabinet, while the composition of the legislature is decided through separate elections.

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main left-wing opposition Democratic Party and the leading contender to succeed Yoon as president in the event of fresh elections, described his address as “disappointing”.

“His remarks will just fuel the public feeling of betrayal and anger,” Lee told reporters. “The Republic of Korea’s biggest risk at the moment is Yoon’s existence.”

Most observers believe that PPP leader Han’s call on Friday for Yoon to be removed “immediately” will swing Saturday’s vote, which is scheduled for just after 5pm local time, in favour of impeachment.

But a former official in Yoon’s presidential administration said that while most South Korean conservatives do not condone Yoon’s actions this week, they had been “traumatised” by their experience of the impeachment of former conservative president Park Geun-hye in 2017, which paved the way for the election of Yoon’s left-wing predecessor Moon Jae-in.

Suh Bok-kyung, a political commentator, suggested that Yoon’s apology might have been part of a deal with PPP lawmakers that would involve him resigning from the party and handing over political direction of the state affairs in exchange for their votes tonight.

If an impeachment motion is passed, it must then be approved by the country’s Constitutional Court. In the meantime, the president is suspended from duties, and authority is passed to the prime minister on an interim basis.