The police began an investigation against the president of South Korea

The police began an investigation against South Korean President Yoon Seok Yeol because he briefly imposed martial law on the night of December 4.

This was reported by the South Korean agency Yonhap and AFP.

Yoon Seok Yeol is charged with sedition and treason. The case was opened after two appeals: one was filed by the opposition Party for the Restoration of Korea, and the other was filed by 59 activists.

The complaints mention not only the president, but also former defense minister Kim Yong Hyun, army chief of staff Park Ahn Soo and interior minister Lee Sang Min.

The Prosecutorʼs Office and the Office for the Investigation of Corruption for High Officials have also received complaints accusing the president of treason, then they should conduct their own investigations or hand it over to the police.

What preceded

Yoon Seok Yeol declared martial law in the country on the night of December 3-4 to "protect the constitutional order" — the first time since the 1980s. The reason was that the opposition Democratic Party of South Korea, which has a majority in parliament, rejected the governmentʼs budget proposal and decided to impeach the state auditor and the chief prosecutor.

An hour later, South Koreaʼs parliament passed a resolution calling for martial law to be lifted. 190 MPs out of 190 who took part in the vote spoke in favour of the decision. In total, South Korea has 300 MPs, but only 190 of them were able to get into the parliament building, despite being surrounded by soldiers storming the National Assembly building.

After that, the South Korean government supported the "plan to lift martial law" demanded by the parliament. The office of the countryʼs prime minister reported that the proposal was approved at 04:30 local time. Martial law lasted for about six hours.

When the parliamentarians adopted the resolution, people sang the national anthem and applauded in the streets. According to preliminary estimates, four thousand citizens gathered near the parliament building. Korean trade union flags could be seen in the crowd. The head of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions Yang Kyung Soo took to the podium and announced an indefinite general strike until President Yoon Seok Yeol resigns.

The leader of the opposition Democratic Party Park Chan Dae said that the president of South Korea will not be able to avoid accusations of treason and should "immediately resign".

• President Yoon Seok Yeol has low approval ratings in the country, particularly due to rising food and housing prices, labour conflicts and a sharp drop in the birth rate. The presidentʼs reputation has also been under fire over a hidden camera video of First Lady Kim Keon Hee allegedly accepting a $2 200 Dior bag as a gift.

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