BOK chief says martial law fiasco will not dent economy, thought it was ‘deepfake’

The chief of South Korea’s central bank has said that the ongoing political turmoil following President Yoon Suk Yeol’s martial law declaration is unlikely to dent the economy, calling the short-lived move an “unimaginable mistake,” according to a British newspaper.

Bank of Korea (BOK) Gov. Rhee Chang-yong made the comment in an interview with The Economist, which was published Thursday as part of an article titled “South Korea’s unrepentant president is on the brink.”

Rhee was one of many senior officials who learned of Yoon’s martial law imposition only when he saw Yoon’s late-night surprise address on TV on Dec. 3, according to the report.

“I initially thought the video was a deepfake and that the television station had been hacked,” Rhee was quoted as saying, calling the declaration an “unnecessary and unimaginable mistake” and an “embarrassment.”

The martial law was lifted about six hours later after the National Assembly voted to reject it.

Following the shocking incident, the stock market tumbled and the Korean won sank to a two-year low last week, though the market has somewhat been stabilized after financial authorities vowed to inject unlimited liquidity and implement necessary measures in a bold and swift manner, when needed.

“There is a mechanism for economic issues to be dealt with irrespective of political issues,” Rhee told the newspaper.

In an effort to assure global investors and partner nations about the country’s strong economic fundamentals, Rhee has stressed that Yoon’s move was purely out of political reasons and that economic fundamentals are not linked to politics.

The Economist assessed that the impact of Yoon’s move on the South Korean economy will probably be muted, but prolonged political uncertainty “will make it harder to tackle longer-term economic challenges.”

The opposition-controlled National Assembly will vote on a second impeachment motion against Yoon over the weekend after the first one to remove him from office failed last week due to a lack of quorum. At least eight ruling party members need to break ranks for the impeachment motion to pass.

Yoon has rejected intensifying pressure to step down and pledged to “fight to the end.”