The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Korea has unanimously upheld the impeachment of President Yun Suk-yeol, permanently removing him from power.
All eight justices supported the impeachment. The final removal from power required the votes of at least six of them.
On December 14, the parliament removed Yun Suk-yeol from power for his imposition of martial law. The deputies filed five charges against the president. The judges concluded that he had no legal basis for imposing martial law.
The constitution allows this to be done only in the event of war, armed conflict or other national emergencies.
The judges ruled that he had violated the law by sending the military into parliament, using the military for political purposes.
According to the judges, the martial law decree, which includes a ban on parliamentary activities, violates key rights of citizens of the Republic of Korea. Sending the military to the Central Election Commission to seize servers without a warrant also violates the law and undermines the independence of that body.
Another charge related to the compilation of a list of people whose whereabouts the president had ordered to be tracked, including former judges. According to the judges, the former president had already failed in his responsibility to protect the constitution.