The coup attempt in South Korea: when democracy trembles dangerously

On December 3, 2024, South Korea experienced one of the most astonishing political events in its recent history. In the space of a few hours, this country considered to be one of Asia’s most solid democracies found itself on the brink of chaos when its president, Yoon Suk-yeol, declared martial law in a desperate attempt to seize full power. What could have become the seventeenth episode of martial law since the Republic was founded in 1948 turned into what some observers are now calling “the most rapidly failed coup in modern history”.

This extraordinary event, which saw tanks on the streets of Seoul and military helicopters flying overhead, lasted just six hours before being thwarted. Yet its repercussions continue to profoundly shape South Korea’s political landscape, and raise important questions about the resilience of democratic institutions in the face of attempts at authoritarianism.

In this article, we take an in-depth look at the attempted coup d’état in South Korea that shook the Korean peninsula. We first examine the political context that led to this explosive situation, then detail the precise chronology of events on December 3. We will then explore the reasons for the failure of this attempt and its immediate and long-term consequences for South Korea. Finally, we offer an analysis of the implications of this event for the future of South Korean democracy and its international relations.

The political context in South Korea before the coup attempt

A conservative president facing a hostile parliament

Yoon Suk-yeol, the former Attorney General who became President of South Korea in May 2022, belongs to the conservative People’s Power Party (PPP). As soon as he came to power, he found himself in a delicate political situation: his party did not have a majority in the South Korean National Assembly, where the center-left opposition Democratic Party (Minju) held over 170 of the 300 seats in parliament.

This political configuration, known as “divided government” or “cohabitation”, has created an almost permanent institutional deadlock. To pass a law in South Korea, you need at least 150 votes out of 300, i.e. a simple majority. With 170 deputies, the opposition could systematically block bills proposed by President Yoon and his government.

Unlike some political systems, such as France’s, South Korea has no equivalent of Article 49.3, which would allow the government to pass legislation without a parliamentary vote. This lack of a constitutional mechanism for bypassing a parliamentary deadlock has considerably limited President Yoon’s room for maneuver.

The situation worsened further in the spring of 2024, following the opposition’s sweeping victory in the parliamentary elections: the Democratic Party won 173 seats (up from 156), while the People’s Power Party rose from 114 to 108 seats. The President’s unpopularity reached a record high at the beginning of November 2024, with only 17% of favorable opinions.

A presidency marred by scandal

Long before his coup attempt in South Korea, President Yoon Suk-yeol had already been weakened by a series of scandals. The most high-profile of these concerned his wife, Kim Keon-hee. In 2022, the First Lady was unwittingly filmed accepting a 2,000-euro Dior handbag from a pastor. In South Korea, government officials – and their spouses – are not allowed to accept gifts worth more than 750 dollars (around 700 euros). Faced with the controversy, the president finally apologized publicly in early November 2024, while vetoing a bill calling for an investigation into the accusations.

Other cases have also tarnished the presidential couple’s reputation. Kim Keon-hee was charged in a stock market manipulation case, and her mother-in-law was sentenced to a year in prison for falsifying financial documents in a real estate transaction.

In November 2024, a new scandal erupted when recordings of phone calls dating back to 2022 were leaked. In these audios, the president was heard boasting about having requested the nomination to the National Assembly of a particular candidate, Kim Young-sun, who was indeed nominated as the party’s candidate the day after this call. The opposition saw this as irrefutable proof of the Head of State’s interference in the running of his party.

In addition, tensions have arisen between the President and the leader of his own party, Han Dong-hoon, further weakening his political position. According to some analysts, this “growing isolation” within his movement, combined with “the opposition’s relentless insistence on holding him to account”, has led the President to take extreme measures.

An aggressive foreign policy towards North Korea

President Yoon Suk-yeol has distinguished himself by his hard line towards North Korea, breaking with the more conciliatory approach of his predecessor Moon Jae-in. This stance has been reflected in a determination to significantly increase South Korea’s military capabilities in the face of Pyongyang’s repeated provocations.

It should be remembered that technically, the two Koreas are still at war, since the 1950-1953 conflict was concluded by a simple armistice and not by a formal peace treaty. This “neither war nor peace” situation is regularly exploited by political leaders on both sides to justify exceptional measures.

Against this tense backdrop, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has stepped up his missile tests and bellicose statements, increasing the pressure on the South Korean government. President Yoon responded by strengthening the alliance with the United States and adopting a tough rhetoric.

The budget crisis of 2025: the catalyst

The final straw came during discussions on the 2025 budget. President Yoon proposed a substantial increase in military spending, comprising three main components:

1. Increasing the size of the South Korean army
2. Increased investment in research and development of new military technologies
3. Expanding the powers of law enforcement agencies to “ensure greater security for citizens”.

This budget proposal reflected the President’s vision of security, but was met with outright opposition from the Democratic Party, which has a majority in Parliament. For the opposition, these measures risked exacerbating tensions with North Korea and further militarizing South Korean society, to the detriment of other priorities such as social protection and ecological transition.

At the end of November 2024, opposition MPs voted in favor of a drastically reduced budget for the year 2025, a far cry from the President’s wishes. Yoon Suk-yeol blasted this choice, accusing the opposition of cutting “all budgets essential to the nation’s primary functions”.

The rejection of the military budget by the National Assembly led to growing frustration on the part of President Yoon, who saw his national security policy systematically obstructed. It was in this climate of institutional deadlock and geopolitical tensions that the unthinkable happened: the attempted coup d’état in South Korea on December 3, 2024.

Chronology and course of the coup attempt in South Korea

The fateful evening of December 3, 2024

Tuesday December 3, 2024 will go down in South Korea’s political history. At precisely 10.27pm, in a move as sudden as it was unexpected, President Yoon Suk-yeol abruptly left a cabinet meeting without explanation. A few minutes later, from an adjacent room, he made a televised address that took the entire nation by surprise: he declared martial law throughout South Korea.

This decision marks a radical turning point in the country’s recent history. Martial law had not been invoked in South Korea since 1980, during the last coup d’état led by former president Chun Doo-hwan. With this exceptional measure, President Yoon has de facto placed the entire country under military control, temporarily suspending the normal functioning of democratic institutions.

In his speech, the President justified his decision by denouncing what he described as “legislative dictatorship” organized by the opposition and the resulting “paralysis” of the state. He went so far as to accuse opposition MPs of being “communist agents” seeking to “overthrow the country’s liberal democratic system” and hand it over to North Korea. “I declare martial law as a matter of urgency”, he announced, deeming this measure necessary to protect the country from “North Korean communist forces” and to “eliminate elements hostile to the State”.

He clearly pointed the finger at the main opposition force: “With no concern for the people’s livelihood, the opposition party has paralyzed the government, for the purposes of impeachment, special investigations and to protect its leader from prosecution,” he launched live. “Our National Assembly has become a haven for criminals, a den of legislative dictatorship that seeks to paralyze the administrative and judicial systems and overthrow our liberal democratic order.”

Deployment of military forces

Within minutes of this declaration, an impressive military presence was deployed in the capital Seoul and the country’s main cities. Videos that quickly went viral showed surreal scenes:

• Korean Special Forces units are mobilized and take up positions around government buildings.
• Military helicopters fly low over the capital and land on the roof of the parliament building
• Tanks deployed in Seoul’s main thoroughfares
• Roadblocks are set up at strategic points around the city

As many witnesses describe it, the scene resembles more a “Korean drama” than reality, so unreal does the situation seem. And yet, for a few hours, South Korea was plunged into total chaos, with a dumbfounded population witnessing live what looked like a military coup.

The practical implications of martial law

The introduction of martial law is no mere administrative formality. It has serious consequences for civil liberties and the functioning of institutions:

1. The army takes control of public order, replacing the civilian police force.
2. Military gets power to arrest without warrant
3. Civil courts are replaced by military courts, which can hand down much harsher sentences, including the death penalty.
4. Fundamental freedoms (expression, assembly, demonstration) may be suspended
5. Curfews and travel restrictions may be imposed
6. Media may be subject to military censorship

According to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency, the imposition of martial law immediately led to a ban on all political activities in the country and the sealing off of parliament. Reuters reported that ” strikes, work stoppages and rallies that incite social chaos” were also banned. The decree also prohibited “attempting subversion” and outlawed the dissemination of “false news” and the “manipulation of public opinion”.

In other words, martial law temporarily transforms a democratic state into an authoritarian regime under military control. It is precisely this seriousness that explains why its invocation provoked an immediate and vigorous reaction.

Reaction from the opposition and civil society

As soon as martial law was announced, the Democratic Party, which has a majority in the National Assembly, mobilized. The South Korean Constitution, amended after authoritarian experiments in the past, provides for a safeguard mechanism: martial law can be lifted if more than 150 deputies (a simple majority) vote in favor.

South Korea’s opposition leader, Lee Jae-myung, immediately declared the measure “illegal”, calling on the population and elected members of his camp to gather outside parliament in protest: “Come to the National Assembly now. I’m coming too”. A progressive figure, unlike conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol, Lee Jae-myung narrowly lost the last presidential election in 2022.

Within a few hours, the opposition deputies managed to assemble, despite the obstacles posed by the military deployment. As special forces attempted to enter the building, 190 of the 300 members of parliament voted to “invalidate” the decree establishing martial law. The announcement of this vote led to the almost immediate withdrawal of the military forces attempting to enter the parliament building.

Meanwhile, South Korean civil society, with its long tradition of democratic mobilization, is beginning to organize. Calls for peaceful resistance are circulating on social networks, and citizens are beginning to gather spontaneously in several parts of Seoul. According to South Korean television, hundreds of demonstrators flocked to the parliament building, some physically opposing the military’s entry. National Assembly employees also set up barricades to prevent the military from entering. Many demonstrators chanted slogans such as “End martial law”, “Protect democracy” and “Remove President Yoon”.

Even more surprisingly, critical voices are being raised within the ruling People’s Power Party. Several conservative cadres are publicly distancing themselves from the President’s initiative, refusing to endorse what appears to be a flagrant violation of the constitutional order.

The international response

The attempted coup d’état in South Korea immediately triggered international reactions. The United Nations, the United States and the United Kingdom were quick to express their concern at the situation. Washington soberly stated that it was “following the situation closely” and was “in contact with the government of the Republic of Korea”, as stated in a statement by the White House National Security Council spokesperson.

China called on its citizens in South Korea to exercise “caution”. The Kremlin, which has strengthened its ties with North Korea in support of its war against Ukraine, merely described the situation as “alarming”.

The failed coup attempt in South Korea and its consequences

A historic six-hour fiasco

What could have become one of the major political upheavals in recent Asian history turned into one of the most briefly aborted coups d’état in modern history. As reported by Le Monde Diplomatique, “it took less than six hours for the coup attempted by South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol on December 3, 2024 to fail.”

Several factors explain this rapid and spectacular failure:

1. Parliament’s swift reaction: The opposition-dominated National Assembly was able to convene as a matter of urgency and vote to lift martial law, in accordance with constitutional provisions.
2. Division within the army: Contrary to President Yoon’s expectations, the entire military hierarchy was not unanimous in its support for this initiative. Several high-ranking officers expressed reservations about the legality of the presidential order.
3. The mobilization of civil society: South Korea’s population, with its long tradition of fighting for democracy, quickly took to the streets despite the military deployment.
4. Dissension within the presidential party: key figures in the People’s Power Party have publicly disavowed the president’s initiative, weakening his position.
5. International pressure: South Korea’s allies, notably the United States, were quick to express their concern at this attempt to suspend constitutional order.

Following the parliamentary vote, the army initially indicated that it would enforce martial law anyway, stressing that it could only be lifted by the President. But in the face of pressure, President Yoon finally announced the lifting of martial law and the withdrawal of the military deployed in Seoul at around 5 a.m. (local time). “There was a request from the National Assembly to lift the state of emergency, and we proceeded to withdraw the military that had been deployed for martial law operations,” said the president in a new television address.

A slight subtlety, however, as the South Korean president stated that he had attempted to convene a government meeting to officially lift martial law. But given the early hour in Seoul, a number of ministers were not yet present. Yoon Suk-yeol therefore indicated that he would wait until a minimum number of ministers were present for martial law to be lifted. This finally happened a few minutes later, when a government vote approved the lifting of martial law.

By dawn on December 4, the situation in the streets of Seoul had returned to normal, with military forces ordered to return to their barracks. What began as an attempt at an authoritarian takeover ended in an unprecedented political fiasco for President Yoon.

Legal proceedings against President Yoon

The legal and political consequences were not long in coming. By December 31, 2024, as Le Monde reported, “President Yoon Suk Yeol [was] under arrest warrant after his failed attempt to impose martial law.”

The chronology of judicial events has accelerated:

• December 4, 2024: Opening of a parliamentary inquiry into the previous day’s events and resignation of the Minister of Defense.
• December 7, 2024: Opposition submits impeachment motion against the president
• December 15, 2024: Vote on a motion of impeachment by the National Assembly
• December 20, 2024: Yoon Suk-yeol’s presidential duties temporarily suspended
• December 31, 2024: Arrest warrant issued for suspended president
• January 3, 2025: Unsuccessful attempt to arrest the President, obstructed by his security services.
• January 15, 2025: Effective arrest of the deposed president

A police investigation for “rebellion” against the head of state has also been opened. In the impeachment motion, the opposition accuses the president of having attempted to resort to martial law in “a bid to escape criminal investigations” targeting him and his family.

According to the newspaper L’Humanité, “suspended from office for having attempted a coup in early December 2024, his final impeachment has yet to be confirmed by the Constitutional Court.” The deposed president, who has been placed in detention, “remains silent” in the face of the serious charges against him: attempted overthrow of the constitutional order, abuse of power and endangerment of national security.

The political crisis and its repercussions

The attempted coup in South Korea has plunged the country into a political crisis unprecedented since its democratization in the 1980s. As La Presse notes, “political chaos is worsening” in a country usually renowned for its institutional stability.

On December 7, 2024, over 150,000 demonstrators gathered in front of Parliament as MPs decided on Yoon Suk-yeol’s fate. Despite criticism from within his own camp and mounting popular pressure, the President did not resign, contenting himself with a flat apology in a televised address to the nation lasting barely two minutes: “I have caused anxiety and inconvenience to the public. I sincerely apologize,” he concluded, before bowing deeply to viewers.

Han Dong-hoon, head of the People’s Power Party, demanded the President’s departure from his political party, further widening the gap between the President and his own camp.

Demonstrations multiplied in the streets of Seoul, with two opposing camps: on the one hand, supporters of the former president denouncing a “political plot”; on the other, defenders of democracy demanding exemplary sanctions against what they consider a betrayal of the Constitution.

This extreme polarization of South Korean society is reminiscent of the deep divisions that marked the country during the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye in 2017, but with an added dimension: the question of the army’s involvement in political life, a particularly sensitive issue in a country that experienced several decades of military dictatorship before its democratization.

The current political situation

According to a Zenit article dated January 29, 2025, South Korea is emerging “slowly but surely” from this major political crisis. An interim government has been set up, headed by the Prime Minister, pending the Constitutional Court’s final decision on President Yoon’s impeachment.

Early elections are planned for the second half of 2025, to allow the country to turn the page on this traumatic episode. In the meantime, the political parties are trying to rebuild a minimal consensus on the rules of the democratic game, to prevent such a situation from recurring.

The coup attempt also led to a thorough rethinking of the institutional balance in South Korea, with proposals for constitutional reforms aimed at better framing presidential powers and strengthening parliamentary control mechanisms.

Analysis and outlook

Implications for South Korean democracy

The attempted coup d’état in South Korea on December 3, 2024 marked a pivotal moment in the country’s democratic history. The event reveals both the enduring fragility and remarkable resilience of South Korea’s democratic institutions.

On the one hand, the very fact that a democratically elected president could consider suspending the constitutional order shows that authoritarian temptations have not totally disappeared from the country’s political culture. South Korea, which only experienced its first peaceful democratic transition in 1987, still bears the scars of decades of military dictatorship.

On the other hand, the rapid failure of this attempt demonstrates the solidity of the institutional safeguards put in place since democratization. The system of checks and balances functioned effectively: Parliament was able to exercise its constitutional right to lift martial law, the judiciary swiftly initiated prosecutions, and civil society mobilized to defend the democratic order.

Comparison with other authoritarian episodes in South Korean history

Yoon Suk-yeol’s coup attempt in South Korea is reminiscent of other dark moments in South Korean political history, including :

1. Park Chung-hee’s coup d’état (1961): as an army general, Park overthrew the civilian government and established a military dictatorship that lasted until his assassination in 1979.
2. The Chun Doo-hwan coup (1980): After Park’s assassination, General Chun seized power by force, brutally suppressing the democratic uprising in Gwangju and ushering in a new authoritarian period.
3. The constitutional crisis under Roh Moo-hyun (2004): Although less serious, the temporary dismissal of President Roh by Parliament, before his rehabilitation by the Constitutional Court, had already revealed the institutional tensions of the South Korean political system.

The major difference with these historical precedents lies in the speed with which Yoon’s attempt was thwarted. Unlike the successful coups of the past, the 2024 coup was met with immediate and effective resistance from democratic institutions and civil society.

This development bears witness to South Korea’s maturing democracy, which has learned from its authoritarian past to strengthen its constitutional protection mechanisms.

Impact on relations with North Korea and international allies

The coup attempt had immediate repercussions on inter-Korean relations. The North Korean regime exploited the crisis for propaganda purposes, portraying political instability in the South as proof of the “collapse of the capitalist system”.

Paradoxically, this crisis could lead to a reconfiguration of North-South relations. The South Korean interim government, aware of the dangers of military escalation, has adopted a more measured approach to Pyongyang. Some analysts even point to the possibility of a resumption of inter-Korean dialogue, after the years of tension under the Yoon presidency.

Internationally, the crisis has temporarily weakened South Korea’s diplomatic position. The United States, Seoul’s main strategic ally, expressed its “deep concern” at the events, while reaffirming its support for South Korea’s democratic institutions.

Japan and China, other regional powers, have been closely monitoring this crisis, which is altering the geopolitical balance in East Asia. Tokyo has expressed concern about the stability of its neighbor and partner, while Beijing has called for a “peaceful resolution” to the situation, while stepping up its military vigilance in the region.

Prospects for South Korea’s political future

In the short term, South Korea will have to overcome several major challenges:

1. Restoring institutional legitimacy: The process of permanently removing President Yoon from office and organizing early elections will be crucial to restoring confidence in the institutions.
2. Constitutional reform: many voices are calling for a revision of the Constitution, in order to achieve a better balance of power and prevent such a situation from recurring.
3. National reconciliation: The extreme polarization of South Korean society, exacerbated by this crisis, represents a major challenge for the country’s future stability.

In the longer term, this crisis could paradoxically strengthen South Korea’s democracy. As other democracies around the world have shown, it is often by overcoming major institutional crises that democratic systems consolidate and perfect themselves.

The coup attempt of 2024 could thus become, in South Korean political history, not the symbol of a democratic failure, but that of the resilience of a democracy capable of resisting authoritarian assaults and emerging stronger from them.

Conclusion

The attempted coup d’état in South Korea on December 3, 2024 marked a decisive moment in the country’s recent political history. In the space of just a few hours, South Korean democracy teetered on the brink of collapse, before demonstrating its resilience in the face of authoritarian impulses.

This extraordinary event reminds us that even democracies considered to be established can experience moments of fragility. President Yoon Suk-yeol’s frustration at the institutional deadlock and his decision to resort to extreme measures illustrate the tensions inherent in systems of divided government, where the executive and legislative branches are controlled by opposing political forces.

Paradoxically, the rapid failure of this coup attempt in South Korea testifies to the solidity of the country’s democratic institutions. Parliament, the judiciary, the army and civil society collectively resisted this authoritarian drift, proving that checks and balances work effectively.

The consequences of this event will continue to shape the South Korean political landscape for years to come. President Yoon’s likely impeachment, early elections and planned constitutional reforms will mark a new stage in the country’s democratic maturation.

In geopolitical terms, this crisis could paradoxically pave the way for a reconfiguration of inter-Korean relations and a new regional balance in East Asia. How South Korea overcomes this ordeal will determine not only its domestic political future, but also its place on the international stage.

This new page, dramatic as it is, is part of the long evolution of a nation which, since its democratization in the 1980s, has constantly strengthened its democratic institutions and culture.

The failed coup attempt of 2024 will thus be remembered not as the day South Korean democracy almost collapsed, but as the day it proved its ability to resist authoritarian assaults and emerge stronger.

Sources and references

• Le Monde Diplomatique, ” En Corée du Sud, un coup d’état révélateur “, February 2025
• Le Monde, ” Corée du Sud : le président Yoon Suk Yeol sous le coup d’un mandat d’arrêt après sa tentative ratée d’imposer la loi martiale “, December 31, 2024
• L’Humanité, ” Corée du Sud : arrêté pour sa tentative de coup d’état, le président déchu Yoon Suk-yeol s’enferme dans le silence “, January 15, 2025
• La Presse, ” South Korea: Political chaos deepens after failed attempt to arrest deposed president “, January 3, 2025
• Zenit, ” South Korea: A political crisis from which the country is emerging ‘slowly but surely’ “, January 29, 2025
• Wikipedia, “ South Korean martial law of 2024 “
• Video ” I explain THE RATED DICTATURE in South Korea…” by LeMondeDeChoi, published December 8, 2024
• Yonhap News Agency, “ Martial law lifted after government vote “, December 4, 2024
• Reuters, “Strikes and rallies banned under martial law in South Korea”, December 3, 2024
• BBC, ” Yoon Suk-yeol’s popularity at an all-time low ahead of South Korea’s coup attempt “, November 2024
• The Korea Herald, “Tensions between the president and his party leader”, December 2024
• France 24, “South Korea: the president’s political maneuvers worry the opposition”, September 2024
• The Guardian, “South Korean president accuses opposition of sympathizing with North Korea”, December 2024