“It is impossible to ignore the similarities between the South Korean and French political contexts” | EUROtoday

Get real time updates directly on you device, subscribe now.

Lhe South Korea, whose constitutional system has “semi-presidential” traits (two-headed govt with a president elected by direct common suffrage and a primary minister appointed by him with the arrogance of the Assembly), just lately given a lesson in democracy from which France ought to urgently draw inspiration.

The use of full powers, determined at 10:30 p.m. by the President of South Korea, Yoon Suk-yeol, on the night time of December 3 to 4, beneath article 77 of the South Korean Constitution, has been lifted by the National Assembly in a majority vote occurring barely a couple of hours later, whereas the military, which was attempting to dam entry to Parliament, discovered itself prevented by hundreds of demonstrators who spontaneously took to the streets in a wonderful democratic surge.

React rapidly

Ten days later, the president was dismissed by a vote of parliamentarians, by a certified majority of two-thirds, together with by deputies from his personal celebration. If this impeachment has but to be confirmed by the Constitutional Court, Yoon can also be dealing with felony fees, and every part means that he might be sentenced to a really heavy jail sentence, and even the dying penalty, for his tried coup d’état. One of her predecessors, Park Geun-hye, was sentenced to twenty-two years in jail after her impeachmenton this case for acts of corruption.

If this tried coup d’état, permitted by the inclusion of martial legislation within the Constitution, was thus in a position to be defeated, it’s as a result of the textual content in query, permitting a short lived dictatorship, however provides the Assembly the technique of opposing it directly.

It is extra safeguards than our article 16, which gives the president a discretionary energy each to declare a state of exception but in addition to place an finish to it, with none authority being offered by the texts with means to oppose it – neither the National Assembly nor even the Constitutional Council, since solely the opportunity of an “opinion” (and never a choice) from the Council is offered, non-compulsory after thirty days, compulsory after sixty days. However, because the South Koreans have nicely understood, in the case of a coup d’état, you must react in a short time: every part is set within the first hours.

You have 63.92% of this text left to learn. The relaxation is reserved for subscribers.

https://www.lemonde.fr/idees/article/2025/01/04/il-est-impossible-d-ignorer-les-similitudes-entre-les-contextes-politiques-sud-coreens-et-francais_6480805_3232.html