Yoon Sanghyun Says "Almost No Senior Lawmakers Agree with Han Donghun's Impeachment Remarks... No Vote Today"

Yoon Sanghyun: "We Cannot Hand Over Power to Lee Jaemyung"
"Second Martial Law Is Fake News... The Same Situation as During Park Geun-hye's Impeachment"
Some People Power Party Secretariat Staff Issue Statement: "Please Prevent Impeachment at All Costs"

On December 6, People Power Party lawmaker Sanghyun Yoon stated that there are "almost no senior lawmakers who agree" with party leader Donghun Han's remarks calling for the "prompt suspension of President Yoon Suk-yeol's duties," drawing a clear line that a vote on the impeachment motion would not be pushed through today.

Speaking to reporters at the National Assembly immediately after a meeting of senior lawmakers chaired by floor leader Choo Kyungho that morning, Yoon said, "This current state of emergency cannot and should not be justified. There must be a clear apology and appropriate accountability."

Yoon emphasized, "At present, there has not been sufficient investigation or inquiry. In this situation, we must not simply go along with the opposition's claims. We cannot immediately impeach the president tomorrow and hand over power to the Democratic Party led by Lee Jae-myung."

He further stressed, "This is not about protecting President Yoon, but for the sake of the Republic of Korea's system and the future of our children, I cannot join in the impeachment of President Yoon tomorrow."

Previously, the People Power Party decided in a general assembly of lawmakers to oppose the impeachment motion against President Yoon as the party's official stance. However, on this day, leader Han convened an emergency Supreme Council meeting and expressed the view that the suspension of President Yoon's duties was necessary.

In response to a reporter's question about whether the senior lawmakers gathered in the floor leader's office expressed opposition, Yoon replied, "Rather than simply opposing impeachment, there were opinions from senior lawmakers questioning 'how could leader Han act alone in this way regarding a matter that has already been adopted as the party's official position.'"

Sanghyun Yoon and Donghun Han, candidates for the People Power Party leadership, are singing the national anthem at the 4th Party Convention joint speech event for Seoul, Incheon, Gyeonggi, and Gangwon held on the 17th at Sono Arena in Goyang, Gyeonggi. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

Yoon added, "Even if what leader Han says is correct, even if it is 100% correct, that does not mean it should immediately lead to impeachment." He explained that there were discussions about whether the country should return to a period like after the impeachment of former President Park Geun-hye, when the Democratic Party came to power and undermined the nation's discipline and values.

Regarding Han's effective suggestion of supporting impeachment by mentioning the "suspension of President Yoon's duties," Yoon reported, "Most of the criticism from senior lawmakers was along the lines of, 'Shouldn't the party leader share any information he has with us and work together to find a breakthrough? Why is he acting alone with information and causing such confusion in the party?'"

Addressing concerns raised in some quarters about a possible second declaration of martial law, Yoon said, "Currently, various investigative agencies, including the prosecution and the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO), are capable of investigating the facts. Fake news is already rampant. How could there be a second declaration of martial law in this situation? The same scenario as during the impeachment of former President Park Geun-hye is repeating itself."

Meanwhile, some People Power Party secretariat staff members also issued a statement appealing, "Please prevent impeachment at all costs." The statement, issued in the name of the 11th class of secretariat staff, cited Article 8 of the party constitution, which states, "The party actively supports the president's administration and shares responsibility with the president to the people for its outcomes," emphasizing, "The party and the president share a common destiny. The state of emergency is clearly a mistake," and adding, "If there is wrongdoing, the party must also take responsibility before the people. That is responsible politics."

The statement continued, "We remember the painful history of impeachment. As party staff who have experienced impeachment, we cannot justify it for any reason. If we bring down a president we ourselves elected once again, how could we ever ask the people to entrust us with power again?"

The staff members argued that impeachment would only lead to the downfall of the conservative camp and the party, stating, "If we shared in the joy of creating an administration, we must also share in overcoming its crisis. The responsibility for running the administration lies with both the party and the president. We must not abandon our duty."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.