IN PICTURES – A thick crowd gathered in front of the South Korean Parliament, in the dead of night, after the president's announcement of the establishment of martial law in the country.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law on Tuesday, amid heated parliamentary debate over the budget, a decision deemed “illegal” by the leader of the opposition who called on the population to demonstrate.
“To protect liberal South Korea from threats posed by North Korean communist forces and eliminate elements hostile to the state (…), I declare emergency martial law”declared the president live in a surprise televised address.
“Without concern for the livelihood of the people, the opposition party has paralyzed the government, for the purposes of impeachments, special investigations and to protect its leader from legal prosecution”he continued. “Our National Assembly has become a refuge for criminals, a den of legislative dictatorship which seeks to paralyze the administrative and judicial systems and overthrow our liberal democratic order”declared the president again.
All political activities prohibited
All political activities have been banned and media are placed under government surveillance, Army Chief Park An-su said in a statement. Helicopters landed on the roof of the parliament building in Seoul, according to live footage broadcast by television channels. Special forces also entered Parliament before leaving.
South Korean opposition leader Lee Jae-myung called martial law a“illegal” and called on the population to gather in front of parliament in protest. Hundreds of people heard his call and began to flock to Parliament around 1 a.m. (5 p.m. in France), according to television images. For its part, Parliament voted to block martial law. The situation, tense, is still unclear.
France
