South Korean National Assembly passes bill for special investigation into President Yoon Suk Yeol

On January 17, the South Korean National Assembly passed a revised bill proposed by the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) on the appointment of a special prosecutor to investigate impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol in connection with the declaration of martial law.

The amendment bill was passed with 188 votes in favor and 86 against from a total of 274 lawmakers present. All members of the ruling People's Power Party (PPP) voted against the bill. The opposition bloc led by the DP has a majority in the 300-member parliament with 192 seats.

In the recently passed bill, the opposition has removed several points, including the content accusing President Yoon of rebellion and requesting foreign exchange inspections of President Yoon Suk Yeol's government.

The PPP rejected the DP's proposal, saying it did not take into account the content that the two sides had negotiated. The PPP decided to introduce its own bill to eliminate the DP's accusations of excessiveness.

The vote came after DP leader Park Chan Dae and his PPP counterpart Kweon Seong Dong met with National Assembly Speaker Woo Won Shik to seek common ground before passing the bill.

However, no agreement was reportedly reached during the meeting between the leaders of the two largest political parties in South Korea.

After the bill passed, the PPP leader called on Acting President Choi Sang Mok to use his veto power to reject it.