South Korean PM Han Duck-soo reinstated as acting president after impeachment overturned

• South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol was impeached connected Dec. 14 aft declaring martial law. Prime Minister Han Duck-soo past became the country's acting person earlier being impeached himself.
• The country's Constitutional Court overturned Han's impeachment, reinstating the nation's No. 2 authoritative arsenic acting person connected Monday.
• The unprecedented, successive impeachments of the country’s apical 2 officials intensified home divisions. Massive rival rallies backing oregon denouncing Yoon person divided the streets of Seoul and different large cities successful South Korea. 

South Korea’s Constitutional Court overturned the impeachment of Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, reinstating the nation's No. 2 authoritative arsenic acting person Monday portion not yet ruling connected the abstracted impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol implicit his shocking imposition of martial instrumentality successful December.

Many observers said the 7-1 ruling successful Han's lawsuit did not awesome overmuch astir the upcoming verdict connected Yoon, arsenic Han wasn’t a cardinal fig successful imposing martial law. But the ruling could inactive embolden Yoon’s staunch supporters and ramp up their governmental violative connected the opposition.

Speaking with reporters pursuing his reinstatement, Han thanked the tribunal for what helium called "a omniscient decision" and promised to absorption connected tackling "urgent matters," including a fast-changing planetary commercialized environment, successful an evident notation to the Trump administration’s assertive tariffs policy. He besides called for nationalist unity, saying: "There’s nary near oregon close — what matters is the advancement of our nation."

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South Korea has been thrown into governmental turmoil since Yoon, a conservative, declared martial instrumentality connected Dec. 3 and sent hundreds of troops to the wide opposition-controlled National Assembly and different places successful Seoul. Yoon's decree lasted lone six hours arsenic capable lawmakers managed to participate an assembly hallway wherever they rapidly voted down the decree.

The impeachment arguments

The assembly impeached Yoon connected Dec. 14, alleging helium violated the Constitution and different laws by suppressing assembly activities and trying to detain politicians. Yoon's impeachment made Han acting president until helium was impeached successful precocious December.

The unprecedented, successive impeachments that suspended the country’s apical 2 officials intensified home part and deepened worries astir South Korea's diplomatic and economical activities.

South Korean acting President Han Duck-soo speaks during a briefing astatine the Government Complex successful Seoul, South Korea, connected March 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, Pool)

A large trigger for the opposition’s propulsion to impeach Han was his refusal to capable 3 vacant seats astatine the Constitutional Court's nine-member bench. That was a highly explosive contented due to the fact that the tribunal needed enactment from astatine slightest six justices to o.k. Yoon's impeachment and filling its bare posts could marque specified a determination much likely.

After Han was suspended, his successor arsenic acting president, Choi Sang-mok, appointed 2 caller justices but near the ninth spot vacant.

Han was besides accused successful the impeachment question of abetting Yoon’s martial instrumentality declaration and obstructing efforts to unfastened autarkic investigations into Yoon’s alleged rebellion successful transportation with his martial instrumentality decree.

On Monday, 7 of the Constitutional Court's 8 justices ruled to overturn oregon disregard Han's impeachment. They ruled that his alleged actions weren’t against the instrumentality oregon weren’t superior capable to region him from bureau oregon his impeachment question didn't adjacent conscionable a required quorum erstwhile it passed done the assembly. One justness upheld Han’s impeachment.

The main wide absorption Democratic Party expressed regret implicit the court’s determination to reinstate Han and urged it to disregard Yoon quickly. Yoon’s bureau welcomed Monday’s ruling, saying it shows again the opposition’s repeated uses of impeachment motions were "reckless, malicious governmental offensive."

What's next?

Observers earlier had predicted the Constitutional Court would regularisation connected Yoon’s lawsuit successful mid-March, but it hasn’t done so, sparking varied speculation connected imaginable reasons.

"Today’s verdict volition springiness anticipation to Yoon’s supporters for a akin destiny and anticipation for Yoon’s opponents for his ouster," said Duyeon Kim, a elder expert astatine the Center for a New American Security successful Washington. "But it’s excessively soon to foretell the court’s verdict connected Yoon due to the fact that the circumstantial details of some cases and allegations are different."

Kim said the reinstatement of Han, a vocation bureaucrat, volition bring much stableness to South Korea compared to erstwhile his powers arsenic acting president were suspended.

Massive rival rallies backing oregon denouncing Yoon person divided the streets of Seoul and different large cities successful South Korea. Earlier surveys showed that a bulk of South Koreans were captious of Yoon’s martial instrumentality enactment, but those supporting oregon sympathizing with Yoon person aboriginal gained strength.

Yoon argues that his martial instrumentality instauration was a hopeless effort to bring attraction to the "wickedness" of the Democratic Party which obstructed his docket and filed galore impeachment motions against elder officials. Yoon critics antagonistic helium apt tried to usage subject regularisation to frustrate imaginable peculiar investigations into scandals involving him and his wife.

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Senior subject and constabulary officers sent to the assembly person said that Yoon ordered them to resistance retired lawmakers to forestall a level ballot to overturn his decree. Yoon says the troops' deployment was designed to support order.

If the tribunal upholds Yoon’s impeachment, South Korea indispensable clasp a statesmanlike predetermination to take his successor. If it rules for him, Yoon volition regain his statesmanlike powers.

Yoon has separately been charged with directing rebellion, a complaint that carries the decease punishment oregon a beingness condemnation if helium is convicted.