President Yoon Suk Yeol is facing impeachment after declaring – and then lifting – martial law. South Korea is often seen in the West as a beacon of democracy, but its history is marked by coups, martial law and brutal crackdowns on public protest. On this episode, Azadeh Moshiri speaks to Jake Kwon from the BBC’s Seoul bureau, and the former head of the BBC's Korean service, Su-Min Hwang. They unpack South Korea's dramatic recent political history and look at what these events reveal about the country's democracy today. The Global Story brings you trusted insights from BBC journalists worldwide. We want your ideas, stories and experiences to help us understand and tell #TheGlobalStory. Email us at theglobalstory@bbc.com You can also message us or leave a voice note via WhatsApp on +44 330 123 9480. Producers: Peter Goffin, Tom Kavanagh, Annie Brown, Eleanor Sly, and Mariana Hernández Carrillo. Sound engineers: Dan Ehrlich and Mike Regaard Assistant editor: Sergi Forcada Freixas Senior news editor: Sara Wadeson
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Hi there, I'm Azadeh Moshiri from the BBC World Service.
This is the global story.
Democracy under attack in South Korea Tuesday night, President Yoon, a deeply unpopular leader mired in scandal, made a huge gamble and declared martial law across the country.
In the space of hours.
South Koreans suddenly found themselves wondering whether life as they knew it was about to change in the West.
South Korea is often seen as a red beacon of freedom in a region marked by several authoritarian regimes.
And yet, how well do we truly know South Korea?
With me today is Jake Kwon, one of our senior journalists in Seoul.
Jake, walk me through this.
Where were you when you first found out that something really significant was going on?
So I was doing some late night email, some work, and then my phone notification went off and I almost ignored it because it looked like something that shouldn't have happened.
I could not make sense of it.
It was actually a news app called yonhap, which is the state news agency here.
It said simply, breaking news.
President Yoon declares martial law.