South Korea's parliament has voted to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol, a stunning fall from grace for a man who rose from political obscurity to the height of political power. His decades of achievement could be on the verge of crumbling due to a single, baffling decision to send out troops under martial law over vague claims that one of Asia's leading democracies was under threat. The impeachment suspends Yoon's presidential powers until the Constitutional Court determines whether to dismiss him as president or restore his powers.
Yoon also faces investigations meant to find whether his December 3 decree amounts to rebellion, a crime that is punished by up to the death penalty in South Korea if convicted. Yoon, a staunch conservative and longtime prosecutor, went from political novice to president of South Korea in 2022, ending five years of liberal rule that saw failed efforts to resolve the North Korean nuclear crisis and a slackening economy. His time in office, however, was marked by near-constant friction with an opposition-controlled parliament, threats of annihilation from North Korea and a series of scandals involving him and his wife.
Observers said he was impulsive, took criticism personally and relied too much on the advice of hardcore loyalists. No one thing explained his attempt to shut down the mechanisms of a democratic nation over his claim that "anti-state forces" were acting under the influence of North Korea. But there are strands in Yoon's background, and.