Opinion

A crazy six hours in Seoul and the fragility of democracy

A presidential brain snap in South Korea has revived dark memories of the country’s past, with potentially damaging geopolitical ripples across north-east Asia.

James CurranInternational editor

Dec 8, 2024 – 12.37pm

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Presidential miscalculations in Europe and Asia last week underscored both the fragility and resilience of democracy.

In just six hours in Seoul, President Yoon Suk Yeol wrote an eerie chapter in South Korea’s modern history with an act of sheer political desperation, ushering in martial law before apologising to the nation only days later. He has survived an attempt at his impeachment – for now.

James Curran is The Australian Financial Review’s international editor and professor of modern history at Sydney University.