President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks shortly after the National Assembly passed a motion to impeach him for his short-lived imposition of martial law, at his residence in Seoul, Saturday. Yonhap

With the National Assembly voting to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol, the historical precedents of former Korean leaders who faced a similar political fate have attracted significant attention.

On Saturday afternoon, Yoon was impeached by the National Assembly after 204 lawmakers voted in favor of removing him from office for his short-lived imposition of martial law on Dec. 3. A total of 85 lawmakers opposed the motion.

This marks the third time that the National Assembly passed a presidential impeachment motion.

In March 2004, the late former President Roh Moo-hyun was suspended from his presidential duties after he was impeached by the legislature on charges of illegal electioneering. He became the first head of state to be impeached by lawmakers.

However, public sentiment remained largely unfavorable toward the opposition parties that led the impeachment, leading many people to take to the streets holding candlelight rallies to support Roh.

The Constitutional Court reinstated Roh after 63 days, saying that the charges were not serious enough to oust him from the nation's highest public office.

Former late President Roh Moo-hyun poses during an election campaign in Wonju, Gangwon Province, in this undated 2002 file photo. Korea Times file

However, former President Park Geun-hye was removed from office in March 2017, about three months after the National Assembly passed a motion to impeach her, following an escalating corruption scandal involving Park and her confidant Choi Soon-sil.

The Constitutional Court upheld her impeachment in a unanimous 8-0 decision, making her the first president to be ousted while still serving their term.

Choi was arrested for her unauthorized interference in various state affairs, exploiting her decades-long relationship with Park. She pressured major conglomerates to donate tens of billions of won to two foundations under her control.

Millions of people took to the streets in protest of the scandal, demanding Park's impeachment. Public outrage reached its peak, causing far greater social unrest than during the period when Roh's impeachment motion was passed.

Former President Park Geun-hye appears for questioning at a Seoul court on March 30, 2017. Korea Times photo by Seo Jae-hoon

But it remains to be seen whether Yoon will follow Park's fate.

The sudden declaration of martial law reflected Yoon's frustration with the opposition bloc, which holds a majority in the Assembly. The impeached president sought to justify his decision by accusing the opposition of passing what he described as “unconstitutional bills” indiscriminately, arguing that such actions would ultimately destroy the country.

But the opposition parties denounced Yoon for allegedly “committing rebellion” and violating other laws by deploying armed soldiers to the Assembly on the night he declared martial law.

The Constitutional Court is expected to make a decision within six months on his removal from office.