South Korea’s opposition lawmakers have launched impeachment proceedings against President Yoon Suk Yeol over his failed attempt to impose martial law.

The country woke up to an uncertain reality on Wednesday after a night of unprecedented scenes in which Yoon unexpectedly declared martial law, 190 lawmakers gathered to vote against it and the decision was suddenly reversed.

After the impeachment motion was filed, South Korea’s main opposition party, the Democratic Party, condemned Yoon’s original declaration of martial law as “seditious behavior.”

Parliament must vote about whether Yoon should be arraigned by Saturday.

“We can no longer allow democracy to collapse. People’s lives and safety must be protected,” said Kim Yong-jin, a member of the Democratic Party Central Committee.

The party also said it wanted to charge Yoon with “crimes of rebellion.”

It named Minister Kim Yong-hyun and Interior Minister Lee Sang-min as “key participants” in the declaration of martial law, They said they also wanted them to be charged along with Yoon.

Schools, banks and government offices in Seoul are operating as usual, but protests continued across the city.

“Arrest Yoon Suk-yeol,” some angry citizens shouted as they filled the streets.

South Korea’s largest labor group, the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, promised an indefinite strike on Wednesday until the president resigns.

Wednesday’s announcement came after dramatic scenes overnight in which some opposition MPs broke through barricades and scaled fences to get into the polling hall.

Hundreds of soldiers stormed parliament after Yoon declared martial law, while military helicopters circled the grounds.

Thousands of protesters arrived at the gates of the National Assembly as 190 lawmakers evaded police barriers and squeezed in to vote against the order.

His second announcement – that he would reverse his earlier order – was greeted with cheers by protesters outside South Korea’s parliament.

On Wednesday, Yoon’s senior aides, including chief of staff Chung Jin-suk and national security adviser Shin Won-sik, submitted their resignations. It is unclear whether their resignations will be accepted.

The presidential office has defended the original decision to declare martial law as “strictly within the country’s constitutional framework.” On Wednesday it said the announcement was timed to “minimize the damage” to the economy and people’s lives.

Once an impeachment bill is proposed, two-thirds of the 300 members of South Korea’s National Assembly must vote for impeachment – that’s at least 200 votes. Voting must take place within 72 hours.

Once the impeachment is approved, the President will be immediately suspended from office while the Prime Minister will take over as Acting President.

A trial will then take place before the Constitutional Court, a nine-member council that oversees South Korea’s branches of government.

If six members of the court vote to uphold the impeachment, the president will be removed from office.

In 2016, then-President Park Guen-hye was indicted on charges of bribery, abuse of state power and leaking state secrets.

In 2004, another South Korean president, Roh Moo-hyun, was impeached and suspended for two months. The Constitutional Court later reinstated him to office.

If Yoon resigns or is impeached, the government must hold an election within 60 days so the country can vote for its new leader to begin a new five-year term.

According to South Korea’s constitution, the president has the authority to declare martial law in war, armed conflict, or other national emergencies.

The last time martial law was imposed in the country was in 1979, when the country’s long-time military dictator Park Chung-hee was assassinated in a coup.

A group of military leaders led by General Chun Doo-hwan imposed martial law in 1980, banning political activity and arresting dissidents.

Hundreds of people died in the crackdown on protesters before martial law was lifted in 1981.

Martial law has not been used since South Korea became a parliamentary democracy in 1987.

Yoon pulled the trigger on Tuesday, saying he was trying to save the country from “anti-state forces.”

However, some analysts describe this move as his attempt to thwart political opposition.

Yoon has been a lame-duck president since the opposition won a landslide victory in the country’s general election in April this year – his government has been unable to pass the laws it wanted and instead had to veto bills proposed by the opposition .

The president’s approval ratings have hit a record low of 17% this year as he and his wife Kim Keon-hee have been embroiled in a spate of scandals.

Additional reporting by Woongbee Lee in Seoul and Frances Mao in London