Sunday, December 15

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was impeached yesterday after his brief declaration of martial law around two weeks ago, crushing the public's already-weak support of him.

On December 3, the president announced that he was imposing military rule upon the country due to suspicious activities by his opposition that were reportedly connected to North Korea. This sparked outrage among citizens of South Korea and startled officials around the world, who were stunned by his declaration. Lawmakers rushed to the parliament building and quickly made a unanimous decision to repeal the martial law, quelling the hours of protests that had taken place in the hours following Yoon's announcement. Read more on the initial episode here.

Yoon's approval ratings were already extremely low prior to the incident, and his declaration brought those ratings even lower. His chief of staff and at least 10 other secretaries resigned from their positions, but Yoon refused to step down. Opposition parties threatened to begin the impeachment process if he did not resign immediately, and he called their bluff.

However, that decision went wrong for Yoon, and he was impeached yesterday in a 204-85 vote by the National Assembly. The impeachment is the second time in the last eight years that a South Korean president has been ejected from office, as former President Park Geun-Hye was impeached in 2016 following political scandals regarding her connection to corruption. The staggering loss also shows how even members of his own party have lost faith in him, and Yoon's presidential powers have been revoked. Meanwhile, the presidency has been temporarily transferred to Han Duck-soo, South Korea's current Prime Minister.

Han will serve as interim president for at least two months, as the political process after impeachment is quite long. The country's Constitutional Court now has up to 180 days to verify the National Assembly's decision, and they can vote to either continue with the impeachment or keep Yoon in office. If they choose to impeach him, South Korea will need to hold elections in the following 60 days in order to appoint a new president.

Fact of the Day (Reader's Digest): A group of pigs is called a drift or a drove.

Quote of the Day: It’s so easy to laugh. It’s so easy to hate. It takes guts to be gentle and kind.

(Steven Morriseey)

Word of the Day (Merriam-Webster): Venerate (verb, pronounced VEN-uh-rayt)- To venerate someone or something is to feel or show deep respect for them because they are considered great, holy, etc.

In a Sentence: Her best-selling trilogy led to her becoming a writer venerated by generations of admirers.