South Korea's Constitutional Court has removed President Yoon Seok-yul from office after he was removed from office in an impeachment trial.
Friday's decision comes four months after he destabilized South Korea's political situation by declaring martial law and sending troops into parliament in a failed attempt to break a legislative deadlock.
The country now needs to hold national elections within two months to elect a new president.
The unanimous decision came more than three months after the opposition National Assembly voted to impeach Yoon.
Polls show Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, is the front-runner to become the country's new president.
In a decision broadcast on national television, acting chief justice Moon Hyun-bae said the eight-judge panel upheld Yoon's impeachment because his martial law decree significantly violated the constitution and other laws.
“The defendant not only declared martial law, but also violated the constitution and laws by mobilizing military and police forces to obstruct the exercise of legislative power,” Mr. Moon said.
“Ultimately, the declaration of martial law in this case violated the basic conditions provided for a state of emergency.
“Given the serious adverse impact on the constitutional order and the significant consequences of the violations committed by the defendant, we find that the constitutional benefits of removing the defendant from office substantially outweigh the national costs of removing the President.”
One of Yoon's lawyers, Yoon Kap-geun, described the court's decision as “absolutely incomprehensible” and “purely political,” but the former president made no immediate statement.
The ruling Yun People's Power Party has announced its intention to make the decision.
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
