A South Korean opposition MP has described the chaos and fear of Tuesday night, when he and other lawmakers scaled walls to enter parliament and vote down the president’s declaration of martial law.
Speaking in an interview with The Independent in Seoul, Jiho Cha said the shocking turn of events for South Korean politics reflects a global shift towards authoritarianism, and that he feared his country would descend into “civil unrest, violence in the streets” if he and other MPs failed to stop president Yoon Suk Yeol via democratic means.
Mr Yoon dramatically declared martial law in a national address late on Tuesday evening, triggering an immediate backlash as members of the public and opposition parties rushed to the National Assembly. They overcame the soldiers who had been deployed to block them – although we now know they carried no live ammunition – and the martial law order was voted down before daybreak.
Mr Cha, who is now among the opposition MPs from the Democratic Party spearheading efforts to impeach President Yoon in a vote this Saturday, described the tense hours culminating in Wednesday morning’s reversal of the martial law order.
“When we arrived at the National Assembly, the police had surrounded the building. It was clear we had to find a way inside to block this martial law,” he said. “If we failed to vote, there would have been a civil movement from our people against this violent government. There was a high risk of injuries or deaths in the streets.”
Some MPs broke past the police lines by crawling through their legs; one viral video showed Ahn Gwi-ryeong, 35, a spokesperson for the Democratic Party, grabbing the barrel of a soldier’s rifle as she screams to be let past. Others like Mr Cha climbed over a 1.5m-high boundary wall to enter the National Assembly grounds before making their way inside.
“The MPs and citizens coming together at the National Assembly showed the strength of our civil society,” said Mr Cha. “They created a human barricade to protect us from police and military intervention. Our colleagues and staff even used their bodies as shields to protect MPs from the special forces.”
Once inside the assembly, lawmakers scrambled to assemble a quorum for the vote and barricaded the doors, preventing soldiers from entering the assembly building. Mr Cha described the atmosphere as “scary but resolute”, saying MPs understood the stakes were higher than the average vote in parliament.
By 1am on Wednesday 190 MPs – including some from Mr Yoon’s ruling party – had gathered, a comfortable majority of the 300 who sit in the National Assembly. When speaker Woo Won-sik submitted a resolution requesting martial law be lifted they voted unanimously in favour. The Cabinet then declared martial law revoked at 5.18am.
President Yoon declared martial law citing threats from “pro-North Korean, anti-state forces”, leading many to assume it was the result of some as-yet unspecified threat from South Korea’s nuclear-armed neighbour. Instead, it quickly emerged that he intended to use the measure to seize back control for his lame duck administration, having suffered a resounding defeat in a legislative election earlier this year.
Mr Cha describes the episode as only the latest “very bad example” of increasingly desperate and authoritarian manoeuvres by South Korea’s president, adding: “But we showed how it could be overturned through democratic resilience and swift action.”
“This is not just an issue for South Korea, it could happen anywhere in the world, even in democracies like Europe or North America,” he said. “It reflects a global trend toward authoritarian tendencies.”
Despite successfully seeing off the attempt to enforce martial law, Mr Cha expressed concerns about the lingering damage to the country’s democracy.
“Before joining the National Assembly, I was a humanitarian activist and researcher working in conflict and war settings. I never imagined facing something like this in South Korea. I grew up in post-dictatorship South Korea, but this martial law reminded me of the 1970s and 80s. To see such authoritarian actions again is confusing and deeply concerning,” he said.
“President Yoon’s authoritarian tendencies are deeply worrying. He makes decisions without consulting his Cabinet or the ruling party. It’s becoming more about personal power than governance.”
The opposition is now moving to impeach President Yoon, accusing him of violating constitutional principles and jeopardising democratic norms. Doing so, however, requires a two-thirds super majority – something Mr Cha says will be a challenge.
“There is a real risk the impeachment may not pass on 7 December, especially if the [ruling] People’s Power Party prevents its members from participating in the vote,” he said. “This would be a severe blow to democracy.”
Major protests are expected for Saturday ahead of the impeachment vote, though demonstrations may also take place before then: a rally called for Seoul on Thursday afternoon did not materialise. Demonstrators are demanding accountability, not just for the martial law declaration but for what they see as the erosion of democratic principles under Mr Yoon’s government.
Mr Cha said it was a crucial moment for the country. “The impeachment may succeed or fail, but this is about more than one leader. It’s about protecting our democracy from becoming a dictatorship again.”
