SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea's embattled President Yoon Suk Yeol avoided an opposition-led attempt to impeach him over his short-lived imposition of martial law , as most ruling party lawmakers boycotted a parliamentary vote Saturday to deny a two-thirds majority needed to suspend his presidential powers. The scrapping of the motion is expected to intensify protests calling for Yoon’s ouster and deepen political chaos in South Korea, with a survey suggesting a majority of South Koreans support the president’s impeachment. Yoon’s martial law declaration drew criticism from his own ruling conservative People Power Party, but the party is also determined to oppose Yoon’s impeachment apparently because it fears losing the presidency to liberals. After the motion fell through, members of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party rallied inside the National Assembly, chanting slogans calling for Yoon's impeachment or resignation. The party's floor leader, Park Chan-dae, said it will soon prepare for a new impeachment motion. Opposition parties could submit a new impeachment motion after a new parliamentary session opens next Wednesday. “We'll surely impeach Yoon Suk Yeol, who is the greatest risk to Republic of Korea,” party leader Lee Jae-myung said. “We'll surely bring back this country to normal before Christmas Day or year's end.” Many experts worry Yoon won’t be able to serve out his remaining 2 1⁄2 years in office. They say some PPP lawmakers could eventually join opposition parties’ efforts to impeach Yoon if public demands for it grow further. The ruling party risks "further public outrage and national confusion if they don’t find a formula fast for Yoon’s departure,” said Duyeon Kim, a senior analyst at the Center for a New American Security in Washington. PPP chair Han Dong-hun said his party will seek Yoon’s “orderly” early exit but didn’t say when he can resign. On Saturday, tens of thousands of people packed several blocks of roads leading to the National Assembly, waving banners, shouting slogans and dancing. Protesters also gathered in front of PPP’s headquarters near the Assembly, shouting for its lawmakers to vote to impeach Yoon. A smaller crowd of Yoon’s supporters, which still seemed to be in the thousands, rallied elsewhere in Seoul, calling the impeachment attempt unconstitutional. Impeaching Yoon required support from 200 of the National Assembly's 300 members. The Democratic Party and five other small opposition parties, which filed the motion, have 192 seats combined. But only three lawmakers from PPP participated in the vote. The motion was scrapped without ballot counting because the number of votes didn’t reach 200. National Assembly Speaker Woo Won Shik called the result “very regrettable” and an embarrassing moment for the country’s democracy. If Yoon is impeached, his powers will be suspended until the Constitutional Court decides whether to remove him from office. If he is removed, an election to replace him must take place within 60 days. Earlier Saturday, Yoon issued an apology over the martial law decree, saying he won’t shirk legal or political responsibility for the declaration and promising not to make another attempt to impose it. He said would leave it to his party to chart a course through the country’s political turmoil, “including matters related to my term in office.” “The declaration of this martial law was made out of my desperation. But in the course of its implementation, it caused anxiety and inconveniences to the public. I feel very sorry over that and truly apologize to the people who must have been shocked a lot,” Yoon said. Since taking office in 2022, Yoon has struggled to push his agenda through an opposition-controlled parliament and grappled with low approval ratings amid scandals involving himself and his wife. In his martial law announcement on Tuesday night, Yoon called parliament a “den of criminals” bogging down state affairs and vowed to eliminate “shameless North Korea followers and anti-state forces.” The declaration of martial law was the first of its kind in more than 40 years in South Korea. The turmoil has paralyzed South Korean politics and sparked alarm among key diplomatic partners like the U.S. and Japan. “Yoon’s credibility overseas has been undermined by declaring martial law, so he won’t be able to exercise leadership in his foreign policies especially when his days are numbered,” Kim, the analyst, said. “Its government bureaucracy will need to continue business as usual for existing alliance and foreign policy initiatives as best it can because there is a lot of important work to do globally.” Tuesday night saw special forces troops encircling the parliament building and army helicopters hovering over it, but the military withdrew after the National Assembly unanimously voted to overturn the decree, forcing Yoon to lift it before daybreak Wednesday. Eighteen lawmakers from the ruling party voted to reject Yoon’s martial law decree along with opposition lawmakers. PPP later decided to oppose Yoon's impeachment motion. Yoon’s speech fueled speculation that he and his party may push for a constitutional amendment to shorten his term, instead of accepting impeachment, as a way to ease public anger over the marital law and facilitate Yoon’s early exit from office. Lee told reporters that Yoon’s speech was “greatly disappointing” and that the only way forward is his immediate resignation or impeachment. His party called Yoon’s martial law “unconstitutional, illegal rebellion or coup.” Lawmakers on Saturday first voted on a bill appointing a special prosecutor to investigate stock price manipulation allegations surrounding Yoon’s wife. On Friday, Han, who criticized Yoon’s martial law declaration, said he had received intelligence that during the brief period of martial law Yoon ordered the country’s defense counterintelligence commander to arrest unspecified key politicians based on accusations of “anti-state activities.” Hong Jang-won, first deputy director of South Korea’s spy agency, told lawmakers Friday that Yoon had ordered him to help the defense counterintelligence unit to detain key politicians including Han, Lee and Woo. The Defense Ministry said Friday it suspended three military commanders including the head of the defense counterintelligence unit over their involvement in enforcing martial law. Vice Defense Minister Kim Seon Ho has told parliament that Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun ordered the deployment of troops to the National Assembly. Opposition parties accused Kim of recommending to Yoon to enforce martial law. Kim Yong Hyun resigned Thursday, and prosecutors imposed an overseas travel ban on him.Ceenik Exports to trade ex-dividend next week, Achyut Healthcare to trade ex-bonus; Check full list | Stock Market News - Mint
Mark Zuckerberg apologized to me, once. I was surrounded by other bereaved parents in a Senate hearing room on Jan. 31 when the CEO of Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, turned around to face us and said he was sorry . Our children took their lives after being victimized by harms unleashed by unregulated social media platforms. In that surreal moment, we came face-to-face with a man who became a billionaire from one of the Big Tech companies that we fear puts profits above our kids’ safety. I lost my beautiful, goofy son Riley Basford when he was just 15 because he got connected on Facebook with a criminal posing as a teenage girl, who tricked him into sending private photos and then tried to blackmail him. Riley went into his room that day by all indications a happy boy. But within hours of the predator’s first contact with him through social media, Riley believed suicide was his only way out. Tragically, your child could be targeted too. Roughly 1 of every 17 American children are victims of sextortion , according to an analysis of National Center for Missing and Exploited Children data by Thorn , a nonprofit that combats child sexual abuse. Helen Lee Bouygues March 20, 2023 A majority of American teens use social media for nearly five hours a day , according to Gallup polling – more time than on anything other than school or sleep. All that time on unregulated social media platforms exposes kids to threats from criminals, sexual predators, bullies and unhealthy pressures that promote suicide, eating disorders, poor body image, drugs and alcohol, anxiety and depression. At first, I thought that if Meta knew what happened on their platform, the company would do something to stop it. I reached out – but nothing changed. So I joined ParentsTogether Action , a national advocacy group campaigning for a safer internet. For more than a year, my fellow parent advocates and I have been begging Facebook to meet with us to hear and respond to our stories – and to demonstrate how they are working to protect other children. We’ve been met with silence – aside from the single apology Zuckerberg gave when testifying before Congress under a national spotlight.Then in September, Zuckerberg told the hosts of a tech podcast and an audience in San Francisco that he had made a “political miscalculation” by taking too much ownership for problems that he said were out of Facebook’s control. Adding insult to injury, Zuckerberg said he’s done apologizing for bad actors on his platforms. We bereaved parents will never have the luxury of being done mourning our children. The best thing we can do now is to help save other children. As a nation, we must accept that social media companies won’t fix this themselves. The government must step in and hold Big Tech accountable for online harms. We need regulation to catch up with reality. The last law adopted to protect kids online was The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 . That was before widespread adoption of the internet, the invention of smartphones or social media or the vast technological advances of the last quarter-century. The Kids Online Safety Act , now before the U.S. House of Representatives, would require companies to take reasonable steps to “prevent and mitigate” online harms to children, including bullying and violence, the promotion of suicide, eating disorders, substance abuse, sexual exploitation and illegal products such as drugs. KOSA would require social media platforms to allow minors to protect their personal information and disable addictive product features, and to limit adult users from communicating with children, defaulting to the safest possible settings for minors’ accounts. Chris Coons Oct. 9, 2024 KOSA passed the Senate in July by an overwhelming vote of 91-3. Some 100,000 parents from across the country signed a ParentsTogether Action petition supporting the bill that we delivered to the U.S. House in September. Last month, 32 state attorneys general from both parties and from across the country added their voices to the call for immediate action. Just this past weekend, Elon Musk and the CEO of his platform X echoed the call for Congress to pass KOSA. Yet with just days remaining in this current Congress, Speaker Mike Johnson has failed to schedule a vote – despite significant support from both Republicans and Democrats in that chamber. Why the delay? New lobbying disclosures show that Google and Meta have spent nearly $90 million lobbying against the bill over the past three years. That’s money that they could have used to make their platforms less dangerous for our kids, but instead spent on deceptive, bullying efforts to block any attempts at real change. By including KOSA in a year-end legislative package, Congress has a historic opportunity to save lives caused by online harms while also protecting the rights to free speech and free expression. The time for excuses is over. Congress must pass this bill now. Waiting another year – and risking more kids’ lives – is a cost too high to bear. Mary Rodee is a Canton, New York-based mother, teacher and advocate with ParentsTogether Action , which uses research to inform advocacy and works with families who have lost children to social media harms.Don Miller | Making a choice to be thankful, amid our struggles
South Korea impeaches second president in a fortnight
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The Republic of Korea’s ascent as a global beacon of liberal democracy and capitalism has been built on its robust alliance with the United States. Now this exemplary democracy faces its most significant challenge in decades. It is clearer by the day that President Yoon Suk Yeol’s recent failed attempt to invoke martial law was just the beginning of a major crisis that risks the collapse of the South Korean government and a politically motivated conflict with North Korea. The United States must act decisively by unequivocally condemning South Korea’s democratic backsliding, supporting its constitutional mechanisms for self-correction and strengthening regional security amid its ally’s internal crisis. The situation has grown more unstable by the day. After swiftly overturning Yoon’s declaration of martial law on Dec. 3, the National Assembly moved to impeach the president on Saturday. Yoon responded by announcing that he would essentially hand over the remainder of his term to members of his ruling party, the People Power Party. This prompted party members to abstain, dooming the impeachment vote, which requires a supermajority. In the aftermath, the leader of the ruling party, Han Dong-hoon, and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo announced their intention to jointly take over governance, a move one politician deemed a “second coup” and legal experts said wasn’t constitutional. As politicians work to revive the impeachment process, one member of the opposition party has claimed that shortly before martial law was declared, Yoon’s defense minister, Kim Yong-hyun, ordered strikes on North Korean balloon-launch sites meant to incite military conflict and justify the imposition of martial law. The National Assembly member cited a tip from a credible military source. However, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in a statement to the website NK News, denied that Kim had planned a strike. Kim resigned last week as defense minister and was arrested this week on allegations of abuse of power . Within 24 hours of the martial law order, the United States responded by reaffirming its support for “the people of Korea” and the two nations’ alliance “based on shared principles of democracy and the rule of law.” Now it should be much clearer: The State Department should issue a clear official statement denouncing Yoon’s unjustifiable actions. A unified international voice, led by the U.S., has often been crucial in countering antidemocratic moves. During Peru’s 2022 political crisis, for example, the U.S. made strong public statements through the embassy, secretary of State, and State Department, rejecting “extra-constitutional” actions and advocating democratic reforms . This pressure contributed to President Pedro Castillo’s removal and encouraged his successor, Dina Boluarte, to engage with opposition forces and prioritize reforms. Similarly, South Korea has seen widespread protests against Yoon’s incompetent and irrational leadership. The United States must urge Yoon and all of South Korea’s leaders to respect the will of the people and safeguard the country’s constitutional framework. At the same time, South Korea’s democratic allies, including the United States, must not cooperate in political asylum requests or escape attempts tied to the crisis. To ensure justice, all those involved in the martial law declaration must face accountability through democratic and constitutional procedures. Historically, South Korea has overcome political crises through self-correction and democratic resilience . From resisting foreign invasions during the monarchy to championing pro-democracy movements and impeaching scandal-ridden President Park Geun-hye in 2017, vigilant citizens have held politicians accountable and strengthened the nation’s political system. South Korea’s robust civil society must be honored and acknowledged by the United States and other allies. Beyond diplomatic measures, the United States should raise its military alert levels in East Asia to ensure regional stability amid the potential security vacuum created by South Korea’s political crisis. Key defense institutions, such as the Ministry of Defense and the National Intelligence Service, face operational challenges because of the investigations, resignations and political chaos caused by the martial law crisis. These vulnerabilities could be exploited by North Korea or other adversaries through military provocations or intelligence operations. South Korea is a crucial frontline defender of liberal democracy globally and a buffer against authoritarian regimes in East Asia. It also plays a vital role in America’s supply chains, particularly for semiconductors. Preserving regional stability is essential not only for South Korea but also for U.S. national interests. This is no ordinary political crisis. Because of Yoon’s actions, South Korea now faces a grave threat to its political system, with risks of autocracy and conflict with North Korea. This is not only a test of political resilience but a fight for democracy’s survival. The United States, speaking forcefully, can help its ally rise from the brink. This crisis is a defining test of U.S. leadership, signaling whether America still champions democracy globally. Will Daewook Kwon and Jaemin Park are fellows at the Harvard Kennedy School. Kwon served as an intelligence analyst for the Republic of Korea’s Ministry of Defense. Park has worked in diplomatic affairs in South Korea.The Christian’S Approach To Morality And The 2024 Election – Drew Alan Hall
DALLAS — The New York Mets added Juan Soto, but the Dodgers' lineup remains deeper and more dangerous. The New York Yankees inked Max Fried, but the Dodgers' rotation still outnumbers them in big-name, frontline arms. In a high-priced offseason that has featured several big-market clubs bolstering their rosters — or at least make lucrative bids in an attempt to do so — the Dodgers still reign supreme in baseball's hierarchy of contenders, well positioned coming out of this week's winter meetings to mount a World Series title defense. And yet as they embark on the rest of the offseason, they seem primed to keep trying to add to their collection of premium talent. "We've made some moves that have set a real strong foundation for a successful team," general manager Brandon Gomes said Wednesday as the meetings wound down at the Hilton Anatole. "Now we'll take the next couple weeks leading up to spring training to explore what's out there." The Dodgers already have been busy in free agency. They landed an ace, Blake Snell, on a $182-million contract. They also added outfield depth in Michael Conforto, re-signed Blake Treinen to shore up the bullpen and locked up utility man Tommy Edman to a five-year extension. If the season began tomorrow, they'd almost certainly be favored to win a second consecutive championship. "I like the way the offseason has played out," manager Dave Roberts said this week. "Certainly with what we've done so far, we've gotten better." But they remain hopeful that more improvement will come before they start next season — and receive their World Series rings — in a little more than three months. "We'll continue to try to make moves we feel are needle-movers," Gomes said. "Whether that's impact moves, or depth moves, all those play into our quest to repeat." The most obvious move would be bringing back Teoscar Hernández, among the few impact outfield bats still available. However, any hope of a quick negotiation between the Dodgers and the two-time All-Star went out the window long ago. And Dodgers executives offered rather foreboding quotes when asked this week about the negotiations. "I know that he has talked about wanting to [stay in Los Angeles], I know that we have talked about wanting him to, so again, that's helpful — but it's not everything," president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said. "He and his family get to go through the interest and figure out what makes the most sense for them. So, while we're hopeful, at the same time, if he ends up signing somewhere else, we have no choice but to wish him well." The sides continued to talk this week, according to people with knowledge of the situation not authorized to speak publicly, and are believed to be close enough in negotiations that a deal remains possible. If it happens, that would check one big box off the Dodgers' remaining to-do list. But, with or without Hernández, they are eyeing other potential big-name acquisitions in the coming weeks. Roki Sasaki's posting will be perhaps their biggest focus. The 23-year-old Japanese pitcher is expected to begin meeting with teams as soon as next week, according to his agent, Joel Wolfe. Friedman said Tuesday the Dodgers were putting the finishing touches on their presentation to the hard-throwing right-hander, who will field broad interest from teams since he is restricted to signing a minor-league contract with a modest signing bonus. "He has talked about his desire to be the best pitcher in the world, and we believe that he is capable of being the best pitcher in the world," Friedman said. "He's someone that is obviously a major priority for us." He won't be the only one, though. In the bullpen, the Dodgers have targeted top free-agent reliever Tanner Scott as well as top trade candidate Devin Williams of the Milwaukee Brewers, as the Athletic first reported. The Dodgers showed interest in Scott at last year's trade deadline only to watch him go to the San Diego Padres and emerge as a particularly difficult matchup for Shohei Ohtani in the National League Division Series. Williams is coming off three consecutive seasons of sub-2.00 earned-run averages with the Brewers, who reportedly are looking to move him ahead of his final season before free agency. The trade market offers more possibilities, though the Dodgers aren't obvious fits for any of the biggest potential names. Gomes effectively ruled the team out of contention for St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado this week, declaring that Max Muncy is "going to play third base for us" in the wake of rumors that Arenado (an Orange County native and former Dodgers trade deadline target) would waive his no-trade clause to join the team. The Dodgers haven't been linked to Houston Astros star outfielder Kyle Tucker, either, with other teams like the Chicago Cubs and Yankees reportedly lining up better for the three-time All-Star, who will be a free agent after next season. If the Dodgers don't re-sign Hernández, they could get more aggressive on the trade market, where the Cubs' Seiya Suzuki is another player reportedly on the block (though he has a no-trade clause and might not end up getting dealt). In the event the Dodgers still need outfield reinforcements, Friedman noted there are also "interesting guys" remaining in free agency, though no one as productive as Hernández was last year, nor with the cache he has built in the Dodgers' clubhouse. "There's different ways we can get at this," Friedman said of the outfield plans, with at least one more addition likely needed. "We can have a team that has a little bit more power. We can have a team that makes a little bit more contact. We can have a team that plays a little bit better defense. There's just a lot of different ways to get at value and production and winning baseball games. So, with that, it opens some things up." At this point, the Dodgers are keeping all sorts of options open. They feel good about their roster. They believe a strong foundation is in place. Now, they can spend the rest of the winter trying to round out the rest of their team, hopeful the offseason will culminate with a few more big splashes. ©2024 Los Angeles Times. Visit latimes.com . Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.Breakdown: Turning anguish into action | Podcast Ep. 5: ‘We’re still here’
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