SELF-COUPSWhat Is a Self-Coup? South Korea President’s Attempt Ended in Failure − a Notable Exception in a Growing Global Trend
South Kore’s President Yoon Suk Yeol short-lived martial law declaration was an example of “autogolpe,” or, in English, a “self-coup.” Self-coups are becoming more common, with more in the past decade compared with any other 10-year period since the end of World War II. Why that’s happening? What self-coups involve? And why, unlike in around 80% of self-coups, Yoon’s gambit failed.
Something unexpected – but hardly unprecedented – happened in South Korea on Dec. 3, 2024. With little warning, President Yoon Suk Yeol declared emergency martial law, citing the threat from “pro-North Korean anti-state forces.”
The move, which appeared more about curtailing efforts by the main opposition – the center-left Democratic Party – to frustrate Yoon’s policy agenda through their control of parliament, left many South Koreans stunned. As one Seoul resident told reporters: “It feels like a coup d’état.”
That interviewee wasn’t far off.
As scholars of authoritarian politics and authors of the colpus dataset of coup types and characteristics, we have spent countless hours documenting the history of coups d’état since World War II.
Yoon’s short-lived martial law declaration – it lasted just a few hours before being lifted – was an example of what political scientists call an “autogolpe,” or to give the phenomenon its English name, a “self-coup.”
Our data shows that self-coups are becoming more common, with more in the past decade compared with any other 10-year period since the end of World War II. What follows is a primer on why that’s happening, what self-coups involve – and why, unlike in around 80% of self-coups, Yoon’s gambit failed.
The Components of a Self-Coup
All coup attempts share some characteristics. They involve an attempt to seize executive power and entail a concrete, observable and illegal action by military or civilian personnel.
In a regular coup, those responsible will attempt to take power from an incumbent or presumptive leader. Historically, most coups have been perpetrated, or at least supported, by military actors. A classic example is when the Chilean army under Gen. Augusto Pinochet ousted the government of Salvador Allende in 1973 and imposed military rule.
Some coups, however, are led by leaders themselves.
These self-coups are coups in reverse. Rather than the leader of the country being replaced in an unconstitutional manner, the incumbent executive takes or sponsors illegal actions against other people in the regime – for example, the courts or parliament – with the goal of extending their stay in office or expanding their own power.
This may take the form of a chief executive using troops to shut down the legislature, as Yoon tried unsuccessfully to do in South Korea. Others have had more success; Tunisian President Kais Saied orchestrated a self-coup in July 2021 by dismissing parliament and the judiciary to pave the way for expanding his presidential power. More than three years on, Saied remains in power.
