{"id":2376308,"date":"2024-12-04T15:17:01","date_gmt":"2024-12-04T20:17:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/south-korean-president-yoon-likely-to-join-bizarre-trend\/"},"modified":"2024-12-04T15:19:10","modified_gmt":"2024-12-04T20:19:10","slug":"south-korean-president-yoon-likely-to-join-bizarre-trend","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/south-korean-president-yoon-likely-to-join-bizarre-trend\/","title":{"rendered":"South Korean president Yoon likely to join bizarre trend"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fsouth-korean-president-yoon-likely-to-join-bizarre-trend%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2376308&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The\u2064 topic concerns the current \u200cstatus\u2062 of South Korean \u200bPresident Yoon Suk Yeol and highlights the historical context\u200d of corruption \u200cand political instability in South Korea. Recently, opposition parties have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/watch-msnbc-asks-congresswoman-accused-of-sexual-harassment-how-to-solve-cuomos-sexual-harassment\/\" title=\"WATCH: MSNBC Asks Congresswoman Accused of Sexual Harassment How to Solve Cuomo\u2019s Sexual Harassment\">initiated impeachment proceedings<\/a> against Yoon following his brief\u200b declaration of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/okeefe-dials-in-to-cnn-conference-call-with-senior-leadership-tells-jeff-zucker-he-will-release-tapes-of-editorial-calls-tonight-zucker-panics-and-hangs-up-video\/\" title=\"O&#039;Keefe Dials in to CNN Conference Call with Senior Leadership, Tells Jeff Zucker He Will Release Tapes of Editorial Calls Tonight - Zucker Panics and Hangs Up! (VIDEO)\">martial law<\/a>, which faced important backlash from lawmakers, citizens, \u2064and even members of his own\u200b party. \u200dThis situation reflects a\u200c pattern seen over\u2064 the last\u2063 several decades where South Korean presidents often conclude \u200btheir terms in disgrace, whether thru impeachment, imprisonment, \u2063or tragic death.<\/p>\n<p>Yoon\u2019s immediate predecessors stand as examples \u200cof this\u2063 troubling legacy: Moon \u2062Jae-in, who \u2062served from \u20642017 to 2022, avoided scandal but lost the subsequent election; Park \u200dgeun-hye was\u200c imprisoned \u2063for corruption; and Lee Myung-bak, who preceded her, was also convicted of\u200b bribery and embezzlement. Additionally, the earlier president Roh Moo-hyun tragically committed \u2062suicide amidst a\u2063 bribery investigation. This historical backdrop underscores a \u2062recurring cycle of political downfall, suggesting that Yoon may face a \u2062similarly ignominious fate, continuing the trend of turbulent transitions within South Korea&#8217;s political landscape.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">South Korean president faces joining long line of leaders to meet ignoble end after martial law frenzy<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1902483\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>Opposition parties in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/south-korea\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">South Korean legislature<\/a> have submitted a bill that would impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol in response to his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/world\/3248108\/south-korea-under-martial-law\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">short-lived martial law decree<\/a><\/a> that began Tuesday night.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>Yoon faced widespread protest from rival lawmakers, South Korean citizens, and even members of his own People Power Party. An emergency vote from the National Assembly floor forced him to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/world\/3248716\/south-korean-president-agree-end-martial-law-parliament-vote\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">end the martial law order<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/world\/3248716\/south-korean-president-agree-end-martial-law-parliament-vote\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">sheepishly<\/a> on Wednesday morning.<\/p>\n<p>He is likely to be ousted from leadership in disgrace &mdash; continuing a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/48-senators-vow-to-oppose-any-legislation-that-funds-abortion\/\" title=\"48 Senators Vow To Oppose Any Legislation That Funds Abortion\">long tradition<\/a> of South Korean presidents ending their public careers impeached, imprisoned, or even dead.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full is-resized\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">In this photo provided by the South Korea Presidential Office, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks during a press briefing at the presidential office in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2024. (South Korea Unification Ministry via AP).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>The only South Korean president of the last two decades who did not end his or her term in a dramatic fashion was Yoon&rsquo;s direct predecessor, Moon Jae-in. Moon was ousted in a democratic vote, losing narrowly to Yoon in the 2022 presidential election.<\/p>\n<p>During his tenure, Moon pardoned the previous president, Park Geun-hye, who had been tried for corruption and sentenced to 24 years imprisonment in 2021.<\/p>\n<p>Park&rsquo;s predecessor, Lee Myung-bak, was convicted of embezzlement and bribery in 2018 after being ousted from his position. He was sentenced to 17 years imprisonment.<\/p>\n<p>Lee was freed as part of a mass dispensation of pardons issued by Yoon in 2022.<\/p>\n<p>The president who sat in office before Lee, Roh Moo-hyun, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fbi-report-warned-of-extremist-plot-to-attack-congress-on-january-6-but-capitol-security-was-not-increased-to-meet-threat\/\" title=\"FBI Report Warned of Extremist Plot to Attack Congress on January 6, But Capitol Security Was Not Increased to Meet Threat\">committed suicide<\/a> by jumping off a cliff while hiking in the forest near his home in Bongha village. He was under investigation at the time for bribery and left a suicide note declaring that he had caused too much suffering for others.<\/p>\n<p>Not all South Korean presidents have been convicted of ethical misgivings &mdash; but those free from bribery, corruption, and abuse of power were often born from experiences on the receiving end of such crimes. <\/p>\n<p>Kim Dae-jung, who would eventually become the eighth president of South Korea in 1998, spent the majority of the 1970s and &rsquo;80s under house arrest, exiled, imprisoned, or dodging assassination attempts perpetrated by the government over his opposition to then-dictator Gen. Park Chung-hee.<\/p>\n<p>In a particularly harrowing episode of his life, Kim Dae-jung was kidnapped from the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/japan\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Tokyo Grand Palace\">Tokyo Grand Palace<\/a> hotel in 1973 by South Korean intelligence officers who intended to drown him in the Sea of Japan. He was only saved when the Japanese Coast Guard caught the kidnappers in the act and the U.S. State Department intervened to prevent his execution on the peninsula.<\/p>\n<p>Park Chung-hee was assassinated in 1979 and replaced by President Choi Kyu-hah, who was then swiftly ousted by military dictator Chun Doo-hwan. The new Chun regime sentenced Kim Dae-jung to death in 1980.<\/p>\n<p>International outrage eventually led to this sentence being suspended. Harassment continued throughout the tenure of President Roh Tae-woo, Chun Doo-hwan&rsquo;s successor. <\/p>\n<p>Roh Tae-woo was sentenced to 22 years imprisonment on corruption charges after leaving office.<\/p>\n<p>The vicious cycle was broken with the election of President Kim Young-sam, a democratic activist who previously suffered similar persecution to that experienced by Kim Dae-jung.<\/p>\n<p>He pardoned Roh and Chun in 1997 at the urging of Kim Dae-jung, who would become his successor and an internationally lauded champion for human rights.<\/p>\n<p>Looking back even further, the problem of South Korean executive authority extends to the earliest days of the modern republic.<\/p>\n<p>The first president of South Korea, Syngman Rhee, was forced to resign in 1960 after his authoritarian leadership sparked nationwide protests and accusations of a rigged reelection. He lived the rest of his life exiled in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/hawaii\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Hawaii<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>President Yun Bo-seon replaced Rhee in 1960 as a purely ceremonial figurehead under a restructured government. He was forced to resign by the coup that installed Park Chung-hee in 1962.<\/p>\n<p>With such a consistent pedigree of authoritarian overreach, corruption, and other impeachable offenses,  the current turmoil in the presidential office is less than unprecedented &mdash; though it demands some particular attention as the first implementation of martial law since 1980.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-full is-resized\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A protester waves a South Korean flag as he joins others gathering outside the National Assembly in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. (AP Photo\/Ng Han Guan)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>The fate of Yoon&rsquo;s career in politics is not yet known, but the obstacles he faces to remain in power are overwhelming.<\/p>\n<p>The president is facing calls for impeachment with little if any defense from his own party. Public outrage has resulted in widespread demonstrations calling for his immediate removal. Even his friendly counterparts in the United States have expressed serious concern over the failed power grab.<\/p>\n<p>Riding the wave of unrest, accusations and demands for transparency previously made by political rivals are set to be reexamined.<\/p>\n<p>His opposition accused first lady Kim Keon-hee of corruption after she was secretly recorded receiving a Dior handbag from a Korean American pastor in 2022. A government investigation launched in May concluded no crimes had been committed.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Critics previously dismissed the findings as compromised and demanded a more independent investigation into the Yoons&rsquo; finances.<\/p>\n<p>With an impeachment all but inevitable, the main question is less about whether Yoon completes the final years of his term and more about whether the office will be the only thing he loses.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1902483\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1902483\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol may face impeachment after his brief martial law decree sparked widespread protests<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3468,"featured_media":2376309,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/AP24338506575153.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[46128,46129,5894,34188,46127],"class_list":["post-2376308","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-bizarre-trends","tag-cultural-phenomena","tag-politics","tag-south-korea","tag-yoon-suk-yeol"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/AP24338506575153.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2376308","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3468"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2376308"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2376308\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2376313,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2376308\/revisions\/2376313"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2376309"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2376308"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2376308"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2376308"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}