Military justice investigators who requested South Korea’s ousted president appear for questioning
South Korean authorities want to call ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol for questioning over his temporary martial law decision as the Constitutional Court began its first session on Monday in Yoon’s case to decide whether to remove or reinstate him.
A joint investigation team comprising the police, the anti-corruption agency and the Defense Ministry plans to appeal to Yoon’s office for questioning on Wednesday, as they widen the probe into whether his misappropriation amounted to treason.
Yoon was impeached by the opposition-controlled National Assembly on Saturday over his December 3 martial law. His powers as president will be suspended until the Constitutional Court decides whether to legally remove him from office or reinstate him. If Yoon is dismissed, an election to choose his successor must be held within 60 days.
Yoon justified his martial law as a necessary act of governance against what he described as “anti-state forces” that were interfering with his agenda and vowed to “fight to the end” efforts to remove him from office.
Hundreds of thousands of protesters have taken to the streets of the country’s capital, Seoul, in recent days, calling for Yoon to be fired and arrested.
South Korea’s parliament voted on Saturday to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol over his temporary declaration of martial law, a historic impeachment that was cheered by jubilant crowds who described the result as another bad moment in the nation’s robust democratic journey.
It is not clear whether Yoon will grant the investigators’ request for an interview. South Korean prosecutors, who are conducting a separate investigation into the incident, reportedly asked Yoon to appear at the prosecutor’s office on Sunday, but he refused to do so. Repeated calls to the prosecutor’s office in Seoul were not answered.
Yoon’s office also opposed police efforts to search the compound for evidence.
The request came before the Constitutional Court convened to discuss the case later on Monday. The court has up to 180 days to issue a decision, but observers say the court’s decision could come sooner.
In the impeachment trial of past presidents – Roh Moo-hyun in 2004 and Park Geun-hye in 2016 – the court spent 63 days and 91 days, respectively, before deciding to reinstate Roh and fire Park.
In the past 24 hours, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law, only to have his decision unanimously rejected by a parliamentary vote. Andrew Chang explains the turmoil that led to the president’s announcement, and what he says about the state of South Korean politics. Photos provided by Reuters and Getty Images.
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who will serve as the country’s acting leader while Yoon’s power is suspended, and other government officials have sought to strengthen alliances and markets after Yoon’s surprise ouster disrupted paralyzed politics, halting high-level negotiations and complex efforts to revive the country. faltering economy.
Liberal opposition leader Lee Jae-myung, whose Democratic Party has a majority in the National Assembly, urged the Constitutional Court to quickly rule on Yoon’s impeachment and proposed a special council for policy cooperation between the government and parliament.
Lee, a hotshot lawyer who for years opposed Yoon’s government, is seen as the frontrunner for his position. He lost the 2022 presidential election to Yoon by a razor-thin margin.
Keon Seong-dong, the grassroots leader of Yoon’s conservative People Power Party, criticized Lee’s proposal, saying it was “unfair” for the opposition to act like the ruling party.
Yoon’s impeachment, which was approved in parliament by some members of his ruling People Power Party, has caused deep rifts in the party between Yoon’s supporters and opponents. On Monday, PPP chairman Han Dong-hun, a staunch critic of Yoon’s military, announced his resignation.
“If martial law had not been lifted that night, there would have been a bloody incident that morning between the citizens who would have taken to the streets and our young soldiers,” Han said at a press conference.
Yoon’s December 3 imposition of martial law, the first in more than four decades, harkens back to an era of authoritarian leaders the country has not seen since the 1980s. Yoon was forced to lift his decision hours after parliament voted unanimously to overturn it.
Yoon sent hundreds of soldiers and police to parliament in an attempt to stop the vote, but withdrew after parliament overruled Yoon’s order. No major violence occurred.
Opposition parties have accused Yoon of treason, saying South Korea’s president is only allowed to declare martial law in times of war or similar emergencies and has no right to suspend parliament, even in those cases.
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