Top Stories 25/03/30 Korean Catholics protest delay in Yoon’s impeachment ruling

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19 bishops, 2,118 priests, and 1,436 religious signed a joint statement warning of ‘social unrest and chaos’

The Chuncheon Diocese Justice and Peace Committee marches with Catholics after offering the Mass at Juklim-dong Catholic Church on Dec. 13, 2024. More than 3.500 Catholics, including clergy, are now protesting the delay in the Constitutional Court’s judgment on impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol. (Photo: catholictimes.org)

By UCA News reporter

Published: March 31, 2025 12:25 PM GMT

Updated: March 31, 2025 12:29 PM GMT

Nearly 3,500 Catholics, including bishops, priests, nuns, and laity in South Korea, have rallied to protest the delay in the Constitutional Court’s judgment on impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol.

The rally which included some 3,462 participants also issued a joint statement titled “Catholic Priests' Statement on the Impeachment of President Yoon Seok-yul,” signed by bishops, priests, and religious on March 30.

“The anger of citizens who have been waiting for a swift and decisive judgment due to the arrogance of the Constitutional Court is on the verge of explosion,” the joint statement read.

“Social unrest and chaos have crossed a critical point,” the signatories warned.

The signatories of the joint statement included 19 bishops, 2,118 priests, and 1,436 religious.

Archbishop Simon Ok Hyun-jin of Gwangju, Bishop John Chrisostom Kwon Hyok-ju of Andong, Bishop John Kim Son-Tae of Jeonju, Bishop Pius Moon Chang-woo of Cheju, and Bishop Simon Kim Ju-young of Chuncheon, among others, signed the joint statement.

The Chuncheon Diocesan Justice and Peace Committee organized the rally. 

“We ask the Constitutional Court if it is so difficult to condemn the unconstitutional and illegal actions of those who mobilized the military to blockade the National Assembly and the Election Commission and arrest politicians and judges,” the participants' statement said.

“We hope that you will issue a just verdict now, even though it is long overdue, and this is the order of the people, the owners of the Constitutional Court,” they emphasized.

On Dec. 3, 2024, then-President Yoon declared martial law in South Korea and dispatched troops to the parliament.

His attempt to suspend civilian rule lasted only six hours after lawmakers defied soldiers to vote it down. They later impeached the president, suspending him from duty.

Yoon faces criminal charges of insurrection, one of a few crimes not subject to presidential immunity, meaning he could be sentenced to prison or, at worst, the death penalty.

South Korea’s Constitutional Court has 180 days to issue a ruling regarding Yoon, meaning it has until June this year to decide his fate.

It has typically issued rulings within weeks for past presidential impeachment cases, but it has taken longer over Yoon's case, without providing a reason.

At least six of the court's eight justices must vote to remove Yoon.

The signatories also accused Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, the acting president of South Korea, of corruption after he deferred the appointment of three justices to fill vacancies in the Constitutional Court.

Han “is not filling the vacancy even after hearing the Constitutional Court's decision that the president ‘violated his constitutional duty by not appointing three people elected by the National Assembly as constitutional judges,’” they said.

Han was suspended from his duties for the move. Han had stated that he would not proceed with the appointments until the rival parties agreed on whether he had the authority to do so before an impeachment ruling on Yoon.

The signatories pointed out that while they were “weak priests and monks,” they would help to “break down the gates of injustice and break the curtain of lies.”

Meanwhile, South Korea has seen massive rallies from Yoon supporters and opponents.

On March 29, an estimated 15,000 protesters gathered near Gyeongbok Palace, holding up picket signs demanding Yoon's "immediate ouster" and chanting, "End insurrection and embrace a new world,” Yonhap News Agency (YNA) reported.

Meanwhile, an estimated 23,000 Yoon supporters gathered in central Seoul for what has become a regular weekend rally, denouncing his impeachment as "null and void" and demanding a Constitutional Court ruling in his favor, YNA reported.

*-- This is a translated and edited version of the report that was first published in the Catholic Times of Korea on March 31, 2025.