South Korea: Shocking week for country with people appalled and president facing uncertain future | World News

On the streets of South Korea’s capital Seoul, people are still stunned and they sound incredulous.

It’s been a shocking week to process – one that saw their president threaten their sense of stability and security.

Along the bustling alleys of Hongdae, the air is filled with the sweet smell of baked desserts.

Countless neon photobooths line the roads, alongside karaoke bars and brightly lit shops offering tarot readings.

We sat down with one fortune teller furious at the hand the president chose to play.

“It’s so unacceptable. So of course he should step down or get impeached and our citizens are going to make that happen,” she told me.

We have now heard from officials who claim President Yoon Suk Yeol ordered the arrest of politicians when he sent troops into parliament. It didn’t get that far.

But as details emerge of what took place on Tuesday night with the leader declaring martial law and then reversing the order hours later, the public mood seems to shift even further against him.

Images of troops taking aim at the country’s MPs have been hard for many to stomach.

Even at Real Shot shooting range, we hear plenty of concerns about the sense of danger they believe the president unduly created.

“This is something very ridiculous that really shouldn’t have happened. And it should never happen again,” one man told me.

“If he’s done something wrong then he will definitely be punished,” another man says. “Previous presidents have been. That’s just South Korea.”

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Two floors down we meet Edward, who’s playing darts.

“He’s just so selfish,” he says of President Yoon. And like many, Edward believes if he’s not impeached, there will be big protests.

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Eight members of Mr Yoon’s ruling party will need to support impeachment for the motion to pass on Saturday.

The current sense here is that the opposition have enough of them on side to make that happen.

Thousands of people are expected to descend on the National Assembly ahead of that vote.

On Friday, there were hundreds outside – braving freezing temperatures, many calling on Mr Yoon to be jailed for treason.

Across the road, we find a much smaller huddle of the president’s supporters who are standing by their man.

“The way he did it, he was well within the boundaries of the law of this land,” one said.

But it does feel the public mood seems to be largely against the president.

He took a huge political risk and it shocked and appalled his people.

Exactly what price he’ll pay though is still unclear.