Note: All interview transcripts were manually translated from Korean to English.
It’s rare that South Korea is the lead story in world news, but on the morning of Jan. 19, it was as hundreds of supporters for South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol, 64, entered the Seoul Western District Court, just hours after he was formally arrested by police.
In response to the court’s decision to detain the president, Yoon’s supporters fought against the police, throwing and destroying objects inside the courthouse. Almost 90 rioters were eventually arrested, with 40 rioters and police sustaining minor injuries.
The trajectory of Yoon’s presidency: from an anti-feminist campaign to impeachment
In the years before being elected as South Korea’s 13th president in 2022, Yoon studied law at Seoul University and worked as a prosecutor. When Park Geun-hye, the 11th president, was revealed to be involved in illegal activities in 2016, Yoon played a major role in impeaching and incarcerating her.
During his campaign, Yoon angered many when he blamed feminism in South Korea, controversially attributing the country’s low birth rate to it. He also claimed that South Korean women did not face discrimination and that he would end the Ministry Of Gender Equality and Family, which was founded in 2010.
With more than 70% of Korean men in their 20s or 30s feeling “repulsed by feminists or feminism,” according to a 2021 Hankook Research survey, Yoon gained mass support from young men during his campaign and presidency — a trend that echoed Donald Trump’s base in 2024.
Ryu Hyuk, a former Inspector General from the Korean Ministry of Justice, told The Falcon that Yoon’s campaign led to a highly polarized vote tally, resulting in only a 6% margin between Yoon and runner-up Hong Jun Pyo.
In between being sworn in on May 10, 2022, and the invocation of martial law late last year, Yoon’s presidency was filled with scandals — many of which involved his wife Kim Keon-Hee, who was accused of corruption for accepting expensive gifts from others, including a designer Dior bag from a pastor. Yoon also faced criticism for vetoing 40 bills over the course of his two years in office.
Then came Dec. 3, 2024, when Yoon declared martial law, which substitutes military rule for civilian rule temporarily. This allows the military commander — Yoon — to make and enforce laws however he wishes. Yoon claimed that he made this decision to protect South Korea from North Korean forces. However, the next morning, he reversed his decision after the legislature voted to repeal it.
Many government officials made their opposition known immediately. One of them was Ryu. In 2020, he was appointed Inspector General, a position that directly advises the Minister of Justice and inspects and audits prosecution offices. He chose to resign the next day in protest to Yoon’s martial law declaration.
Ryu told The Falcon that he believes the call for martial law was based on Yoon’s frequent watching of “fake news on YouTube,” and was “based on flawed understanding of the situation.” He described Yoon’s actions as a “clear violation of the Constitution and laws, including Article I of martial law proclamation.”
On the day Yoon declared martial law, Ryu recalled how, after being unsure of how to act against the order, found that his only option was to quit — which he did on the following day.
Said Ryu, “I attended an emergency meeting led by the Minister of Justice. I arrived late, and when I entered, I asked the Minister if this meeting was related to martial law. He confirmed it was, and I said: ‘I have no intention to follow martial law, and I will resign from being Inspector General’ before going home right away.’”
Ryu was not the only government official who opposed the declaration. After Yoon did not voluntarily resign, Yoon’s own party leader eventually supported the impeachment, stating that the party had decided that Yoon would step down. On Dec. 7, government officials attempted to impeach him but failed after the People’s Power Party boycotted the vote in order to highlight their support for their president. Instead, Yoon was officially impeached on Dec. 14 — by a mere 4-vote margin — 204 of the 300 legislators voted to oust him.
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo then stepped in as acting president, before also being accused and impeached on Dec. 27 for lacking intent to complete the Yoon impeachment effort.
Yoon was formally impeached on April 4, 2025, and the next election is set to be on June 3. Currently, the acting president is Choi Sang-mok.
Protests spotlight young women and new environments
On Dec. 14, when over 400,000 citizens gathered to protest, women in their teens, 20s and 30s made up over 35% of the protestors. Due to their young age, instead of mass candlelight vigils — which have been customary for movements of support in both Western and Asian culture — Korean women took to the streets with K-pop lightsticks, dubbed the “Light Stick Revolution” by magazine The Nation.
Soyoung Hong, a teacher at the Silicon Valley Korean School and first-generation immigrant, noted similarities between the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection — where supporters of President Donald J. Trump raided the Capitol Building to contest the 2020 presidential election results — and Yoon’s supporters raiding the Seoul Western District Court, where he was impeached.
“When I saw the rioters supporting Trump occupying the U.S. Capitol four years ago, I wondered if this was America. [It was] the first incident in which the highest decision-making body in the U.S. was harmed by its own citizens,” Hong said. “Watching the frenzied citizens in Korea rioting in the courthouse, I remembered the surprise I felt four years ago.”
The international attention Yoon’s impeachment gained also shined a spotlight on the young women protesting against the antifeminist president. After Yoon claimed feminism was preventing high birthrates and stated his desire to punish women who made false sexual assault claims during his campaign, his government decided to remove “gender equality” in school textbooks.
What does this mean for South Korean democracy?
Following the news in America, former Hankook Ilbo reporter and current Silicon Valley Korean School teacher Jeewon Kim lamented the situation unfolding in South Korea.
“As a Korean immigrant, I have felt immense pride in the country’s rising global stature, especially with the recent cultural advancements in K-pop, K-dramas and their international influence,” Kim said. “It is truly heartbreaking and devastating to see such events unfold during this time of elevated national recognition.”
While the effects of Yoon’s actions have influenced both Korean immigrants and current residents, Kim believes South Korea’s democracy can and will recover.
With Yoon’s presidency showing the cracks in Korean democracy, how can America benefit from learning about these problems?
“I believe this series of events will serve as another bitter yet valuable lesson in the history of Korean democracy,” Kim said. “However, Korea has successfully overcome numerous national crises in the past and accumulated a wealth of experience in sacrifice and struggle for democracy. While it may take time, I am hopeful that this will ultimately lead the country in a better direction.”
