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Why South Korea’s Leader, Desperate and Frustrated, Made a Fateful Decision
NY Times ^ | Dec 4, 2024 | Choe Sang-Hun

Posted on 12/04/2024 2:27:12 PM PST by McGruff

For Yoon Suk Yeol, the unpopular president of South Korea, things appeared to worsen with each passing day. Thousands of doctors had been on strike for almost a year to resist his health care reforms. The opposition in Parliament repeatedly pushed for investigations into his wife, as well as the impeachment of his cabinet members, accusing them of corruption and abuse of power. And the lawmakers blocked many of Mr. Yoon’s bills and political appointments.

On Tuesday night, Mr. Yoon took a desperate measure, his boldest political gamble, which he said was driven by frustration and crisis. In a surprise, nationally televised address, he declared martial law, the first such decree in the country in decades. The move banned all political activities, civil gatherings and “fake news” in what he called an attempt to save his country from “pro-North Korean” and “anti-state forces.”

...lawmakers who included members of Mr. Yoon’s own People Power Party voted unanimously to strike down his martial law. Six hours after declaring it, Mr. Yoon appeared on television again, this time to retract his decision.

(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: korea

1 posted on 12/04/2024 2:27:12 PM PST by McGruff
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Full article here:

https://archive.ph/DQrv6#selection-859.312-859.533


2 posted on 12/04/2024 2:27:35 PM PST by McGruff (Where's Biden?)
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To: McGruff

Because he can’t prevent criminal charges when he’s out of office?


3 posted on 12/04/2024 2:28:44 PM PST by Jonty30 (Genghis Khan did not have the most descendants. His father had more. )
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To: McGruff

Nervous Breakdown


4 posted on 12/04/2024 2:30:16 PM PST by butlerweave
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To: McGruff

How did he get elected if he’s so unpopular, and has he changed any of his political stances from the past?


5 posted on 12/04/2024 2:31:15 PM PST by smokingfrog ( sleep with one eye open (<o> --- )
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To: McGruff

His reasons turn out to be pretty good.

Undermining the nation from within just like Dems and deep state here.


6 posted on 12/04/2024 2:31:18 PM PST by ifinnegan (Democrats kill babies and harvest their organs to sell)
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To: smokingfrog

I think he won a very close election because the incumbent was very unpopular, and people just wanted that guy out.


7 posted on 12/04/2024 2:34:05 PM PST by Truthsearcher
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To: McGruff

I don’t trust NY Times - nor Korean mainstream media with this. South Korea’s conservative female former president still sits in jail on frivolous charges.


8 posted on 12/04/2024 2:34:24 PM PST by CondoleezzaProtege
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To: ifinnegan

exactly. S. Korea has terrible left leaning establishment as well. Media; academica; the works. i know firsthand.


9 posted on 12/04/2024 2:35:08 PM PST by CondoleezzaProtege
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To: CondoleezzaProtege

academia*


10 posted on 12/04/2024 2:35:26 PM PST by CondoleezzaProtege
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To: smokingfrog; butlerweave; Jonty30

South Korean political establishment/media/academia is extremely corrupt. Like here. Like the world. But economic boons, and US military security keeps the worst from going out of hand. Same dynamics as here only they actually jailed the former first female president on frivolous charges.


11 posted on 12/04/2024 2:38:29 PM PST by CondoleezzaProtege
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To: CondoleezzaProtege

They owe us 110 Billion.


12 posted on 12/04/2024 2:45:50 PM PST by cowboyusa (YESHUA IS KING OF AMERICA, AND HE WILL HAVE NO OTHER GODS BEFORE HIM!)
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To: CondoleezzaProtege

“exactly. S. Korea has terrible left leaning establishment as well. Media; academica; the works. i know firsthand.”

Yep, trained and controlled by Americans. Sad for the people there, they never had a chance.


13 posted on 12/04/2024 2:47:01 PM PST by BobL
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To: McGruff

I guess Samsung better move to the U.S.

Texas is good.


14 posted on 12/04/2024 5:32:48 PM PST by unlearner (Still not tired of winning.)
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To: CondoleezzaProtege

Evidently, his popularity went downhill and a new political party was formed that gained enough seats so that they can block almost everything that he might want to do. I’m not sure where the justification for declaring martial law comes into it though.


15 posted on 12/04/2024 6:24:08 PM PST by smokingfrog ( sleep with one eye open (<o> --- )
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To: McGruff

https://thediplomat.com/2023/06/south-koreas-healthcare-sector-is-heading-toward-a-crisis/

There is apparently a deadly shortage of doctors in South Korea.

The doctors want to keep the shortage and the high salaries the shortage supports.


16 posted on 12/04/2024 6:27:49 PM PST by Brian Griffin
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To: Brian Griffin

There are some parallels here to that...


17 posted on 12/04/2024 8:45:13 PM PST by Paul R. (Bin Laden wanted Obama killed so the incompetent VP, Biden, would become President!)
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To: smokingfrog

It seems that he won by 0.3% or something and his popularity dropped after that


18 posted on 12/05/2024 5:16:22 AM PST by Cronos
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