Five hundred and ten Korean psychiatrists have called for the impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol. “Only a decisive solution based on the constitution can help the people and the country recover from the trauma of violence,” they said.

“We extend our deepest sympathies to the people who must have been deeply traumatized by the declaration of emergency martial law on Dec. 3, the threatening proclamation, and the sudden deployment of the military,” the psychiatrists said in a declaration issued on Thursday. “Only Yoon’s exit through the Constitutional process can heal the national trauma.”

“Many Koreans who remember the history of military dictatorship and state violence could not help but feel deep fear as they relived the trauma,” they said. “We demand a sincere apology from the incumbent president, who has shocked the nation by violating the Constitution and unjust exercise of power, as well as his suspension or resignation from office through the constitutional process.”

They criticized the declaration that martial law “has frightened and humiliated innocent citizens, culminating in the murderous threats against medical personnel whose job it is to treat and care for them.”

Noting that the current unrest is reinforcing national trauma and amplifying fears about the future, the psychiatrists emphasized that psychiatric care for victims of violent trauma requires rapid safety for victims and punishment for perpetrators,

They called for the ruling People Power Party (PPP) to stop shirking its responsibilities and participate in the parliament's decision-making process.

“Resolving the healthcare crisis resulting from the increase of the medical enrollment quota by the incumbent president and his administration also requires respecting the medical community instead of threatening to punish medical professionals,” they said. “The political establishment should strive to make rational decisions and measures to end the current crisis as soon as possible.”