section_path: Events/Declaration of martial law
section_name: Declaration of martial law
paragraph_text: Declaration of martial law
  
  At 22:23 on 3 December, Yoon Suk Yeol began making his emergency address to the nation, and at 22:27, declared martial law. He accused the opposition of being an "anti-state... den of criminals" and "trying to overthrow the free democracy" by impeaching members of his cabinet and blocking his budget plans. He asked citizens to believe in him and tolerate "some inconveniences", and also claimed that there was a North Korean conspiracy against the South Korean government.
  
  Prime Minister Han Duck-soo was allegedly sidelined in the decision-making process leading up to the martial law declaration, and discussions were kept private between Yoon and Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun. Kim urged Yoon to enact martial law during a cabinet meeting shortly before the official declaration that ran from 22:17 to 22:22, in which a majority of the 19 cabinet members were "strongly against" the decision. Yoon also reportedly ordered finance minister Choi Sang-mok to draft a budget for an emergency legislative body which was to have been created during the martial law declaration. and ordered interior minister Lee Sang-min to cut off electricity and water supplies to left-leaning media outlets critical of Yoon, specifically the Hankyoreh, the Kyunghyang Shinmun, MBC and JTBC, as well as the opinion polling agency Flower Research.
  
  At 22:30, Minister Kim addressed a video conference giving orders to all military commanders above the corps commander level and threatened officers with punishment for insubordination if they did not follow the orders. Yoon appointed Chief of Staff of the Republic of Korea Army Park An-su as his martial law commander.
  
  A defense ministry report obtained by DPK representative Bak Seung-a stated that around 1,580 troops, 107 military vehicles, 12 Black Hawk helicopters and more than 9,000 rounds of live ammunition were deployed for the implementation of martial law. MBC also reported that the military brought 4,980 blank ammunition rounds and 100 cartridges for stun guns throughout its mobilization for martial law, while 5,000 live ammunition rounds and some 3,000 blanks were deployed at the National Assembly alone.