South Korea imposes travel ban on president amid martial law fallout

SEOUL, South Korea — The South Korean government on Monday ordered an overseas travel ban on President Yoon Suk Yeol as he faces investigation on possible rebellion charges over a short-lived martial law declaration that plunged the key U.S. ally into chaos last week.

Opposition lawmakers are continuing to pursue impeachment for Yoon, 63, who stunned the East Asian democracy on Tuesday when he declared emergency martial law, accusing the opposition-controlled parliament of paralyzing the government and sympathizing with communist North Korea, with whom South Korea technically remains at war. The martial law order banned all political activity and censored the news media.

Lawmakers rushed to the National Assembly in central Seoul, pushing past martial law troops to enter the building and vote unanimously to reject the order, which Yoon lifted early Wednesday, about six hours after he announced it.

It was a shocking turn of events for South Korea, which spent decades under military-authoritarian rule before transitioning into a vibrant democracy and the world’s 10th-largest economy. Lawmakers swiftly called for Yoon to leave office, backed by thousands of protesters.

An impeachment motion failed to pass Saturday after lawmakers from Yoon’s governing People Power Party (PPP) walked out of parliament en masse, leaving the legislature without a quorum. The opposition bloc holds 192 seats, eight short of the two-thirds majority the bill needs to pass in the 300-member unicameral legislature.

In the meantime, Yoon — who took office in 2022 for a single five-year term — appears to have left his fate in the hands of his conservative PPP.

Party leader Han Dong-hoon said Sunday that Yoon had been effectively suspended from duty over his “unconstitutional acts.”

“I believe it is the will of the majority South Korean people that President Yoon Suk Yeol must resign,” he said in a national address, adding that he would “restore order” by ensuring Yoon’s early departure from office.

“We will minimize confusion through an orderly resignation to alleviate national and international concerns and restore the economy and the nation’s dignity,” he said.

In the meantime, he said, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo will work in close coordination with the PPP “to manage public welfare and state affairs without disruption.” Yoon will not engage in state affairs, including foreign relations, he said.

Han also said investigations into Yoon’s martial law declaration would be conducted “rigorously, impartially and transparently” by the authorities.

Though the South Korean president is generally immune from prosecution while in office, that does not include allegations of rebellion or treason.

Park Se-hyun, who is leading a special investigation headquarters into Yoon’s short-lived martial law declaration, said Sunday that the president had been booked as a suspect on a number of charges, including treason.

“An investigation is underway in accordance with the process,” he told reporters.

Former defense minister Kim Yong-hyun, who has been accused of suggesting the martial law declaration to Yoon and whose resignation Yoon accepted last week, became the first person to be detained in the martial law case after turning himself in around 1 a.m. Sunday local time (11 a.m. Saturday ET).

Interior Minister Lee Sang-min, who is also under investigation, also offered his resignation Sunday.

In a national address on Sunday, Han, the prime minister, said he felt a “profound sense of responsibility for the situation” and expressed his “heartfelt apologies” to the public, bowing his head to show his sincerity, as is customary in Korean culture.

“The government will devote itself entirely to addressing the current crisis as swiftly as possible, guided solely by the will of the people,” he said.

Han said the top priority was ensuring the continuity of government, citing concerns about the economy and international instability.

He also said it was important that South Korea, which hosts almost 30,000 American troops, maintain its alliance with the United States as well as growing trilateral security ties with the U.S. and neighboring Japan.

“The entire Cabinet will work tirelessly to preserve trust with our allies,” Han said.

He also appealed for cooperation from the opposition, saying it was “imperative” that the legislature pass the government’s proposed budget. 

The liberal opposition Democratic Party criticized the response by the PPP and the prime minister as insufficient.

“President Yoon Seok Yeol must be immediately arrested, investigated and stripped of his military command authority,” senior Democratic lawmaker Kim Min-seok said Sunday.

Kim also questioned whether the prime minister had the constitutional authority to govern while Yoon remained in office.

Yoon apologized Saturday in a brief nationally televised address, saying his actions “stemmed from the urgency” he felt as president, but adding that they “caused anxiety and inconvenience to the public.”

He said he would not evade “legal and political responsibility” but did not say he would resign, saying that his party would decide how long he should stay in office and how state affairs would be managed. 

Yoon’s apology is not enough, said Han Min-soo, a spokesman for the Democratic Party. He said Yoon had led an insurrection and “must face the consequences and punishment for this action.”

“I no longer refer to him as the president,” Han told NBC News in an interview on Saturday. “I believe that Yoon Suk Yeol is now using tricks to buy time and deceive the people of South Korea and the opposition party.”

He said the Democratic Party would work with other opposition parties to reintroduce the impeachment motion, and that “if we are stopped again, we will keep trying.”

“I still believe that lawmakers with a conscience, even if they are members of the People Power Party, will agree to the impeachment,” he said.

Stella Kim and Janis Mackey Frayer reported from Seoul, and Jennifer Jett from Hong Kong.