Category: Politics-Korea

Lee Jae-myung with all his legal problems would probably have a lot in common to talk about with Donald Trump if he does in fact become president:

Despite standing trial for 12 criminal charges, including an election law violation for which he was convicted seven weeks ago, Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), remains a heavy favorite to win the next presidential election, according to the latest poll by The Korea Times.

About 35 percent of the respondents said they would support Lee, far ahead of his potential rivals such as Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo (7 percent), former People Power Party (PPP) leader Han Dong-hoon (5 percent) and Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon (4 percent) among others, the poll showed.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

It is going to be interesting to see how this plays out because it has never happened before:

A Seoul court on Tuesday issued a warrant to detain impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol over his botched martial law imposition, making him the first sitting South Korean president to face arrest. 

The Seoul Western District Court approved a request from the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) to issue the warrant against Yoon on charges of masterminding the botched Dec. 3 martial law declaration, orchestrating the insurrection and abusing power, according to the CIO. 

The court also approved a warrant to search Yoon’s presidential residence in Seoul’s Yongsan in connection with the investigation.

Yonhap

Here is how Yoon’s legal team is responding:

Although Yoon has presidential immunity from criminal prosecution, by law, the privilege does not extend to insurrection or treason charges.

Yoon’s defense team has argued the CIO lacks legal authority to investigate insurrection, a charge for which, in principle, police have investigative jurisdiction under the current system, amended during the previous government. 

Oh Dong-woon, the CIO chief, has said that, unlike search warrants, a court-issued detention or arrest warrant cannot legally be obstructed, even by the president.

You can read more at the link.

It looks like acting President Choi is trying to push a compromise between the KDP and the PPP which I doubt he is going to have much success with:

Acting President Choi Sang-mok appointed two out of three Constitutional Court justice nominees, Tuesday, as he presided over his first regular Cabinet meeting after assuming the role.

Choi took on the position following former acting President and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo’s impeachment by the opposition-controlled National Assembly on Friday. Han was ousted for delaying the appointment of three Constitutional Court justice nominees who had won parliamentary approval on Thursday.

Choi appointed Jeong Gye-seon, nominated by the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), and Cho Han-chang, recommended by the ruling People Power Party (PPP), but said he would hold off the appointment of Ma Eun-hyuk, nominated by the DPK, until rival parties reach a compromise.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

If the Democratic Party does yet another impeachment this would actually support Yoon’s rationale of why he tried to declare martial law. The Democratic Party is dangerously paralyzing the government for partisan political reasons:

Despite the growing risk that the country could be left without a government to mount effective responses to serious crises, hard-liners in the liberal Democratic Party (DP) have suggested impeaching more ministers to neutralize the Cabinet’s ability to stonewall legislation should Choi not cooperate with the DP-controlled National Assembly. 

At least 11 members of the 21-member Cabinet must be present for the council to hold meetings, where it considers bills and issues directives. Six Cabinet-level positions are currently empty due to impeachments or resignations. 

One of the DP’s reasons for impeaching Han was his refusal to immediately appoint the legislature’s three nominees for the Constitutional Court, which will decide the outcome of Yoon’s impeachment trial. 

For Yoon’s impeachment to be upheld, at least six justices must agree on his removal from office. 

The court must therefore be unanimous with its current six-member composition to finalize his dismissal. 

In recent comments, DP Rep. Jang Kyung-tae said his party “should impeach several Cabinet members,” including Choi, if he also delays appointing more justices to the court. 

(Joong Ang Ilbo)

You can read more at the link.

That is what the Joong Ang Ilbo is speculating on:

One month ago, far-right political YouTuber and popular pundit Ko Sung-kook uploaded  videos that mirrored the president’s televised public address, including the tone and rhetoric.   

“No one trusts the polls and the NEC [National Election Commission] anymore. They carry the votes around in a basket and are a severe threat to democracy. They should not be trusted,” Ko is filmed telling his 1.1 million subscribers.  

Ko is just one in an ecosystem of far-right political YouTubers who support their beliefs by stretching the truth and spreading unfounded ideas that extend to conspiracy theories.  (Joong Ang Ilbo)

You can read more at the link, but basically the Korean public has lost faith in legacy media and has turned to YouTube personalities for what they believe is less bias news. Yoon is supposedly a big consumer of these conservative YouTube personalities and was sold on election fraud by listening to them.

Yoon has already been impeached there is is no need for this protest. Wait until the Constitutional Court renders its final decision on the impeachment before deciding to protest:

Tractors driven by a farmers’ group calling for President Yoon Suk Yeol’s arrest are stopped by police in southern Seoul on Dec. 21. [NEWS1]

A group of farmers headed into central Seoul aboard tractors to stage a protest for President Yoon Suk Yeol’s arrest were stopped by police on Saturday on the outskirts of the capital, causing severe traffic congestion. 
  
Some 30 tractors and approximately 50 cargo trucks affiliated with the Korean Peasants League were prevented by police from traveling north of the Namtaeryeong pass in southern Seoul at 12 p.m., according to the farmer’s group and police. 
  
The group had planned to stage a protest using tractors in front of Yoon’s residence in Yongsan District and Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul, but the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency restricted their entry, citing their demonstration’s potential impact on traffic.

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but according to the article these protesters with their tractors were clogging up traffic in Seoul. Traffic is bad enough in Seoul without these idiots making it worse.

It looks like most of President Yoon’s cabinet had no idea about the martial law decree and he called them into a meeting that night just to consolidate them before declaring it:

A brief, five-minute Cabinet meeting took place between 10:17 p.m. and 10:22 p.m. in the presidential reception room, apparently without due process or any official record, according to data from the Ministry of Interior and Safety submitted by the presidential office.

Yoon, who came into the meeting but did not even sit down, abruptly left the meeting. At 10:23 p.m., he began reading his statement — without the presence of Cabinet members or reporters. The live televised address culminated in the declaration of martial law at around 10:28 p.m.

Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Song Mi-Kyung vividly recounted that some of those present at the five-minute Cabinet meeting on Dec. 3 were completely blindsided, leaving them powerless to intervene or stop him from making it public.

“(The president) briefly entered the room and then left. After he left, those who were seated were taken aback and asked, ‘Where did he go?’ At that moment, someone played a broadcast on their phone, and his voice came through. That’s what happened,” Song said during the Dec. 11 plenary session of the Assembly, recalling that the Cabinet meeting never formally concluded — there was no declaration signaling its end.

“It wasn’t even possible to grab hold of him or physically intervene in any way. I am truly sorry for this.”

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

This is not too surprising of news:

The leader of the ruling People Power Party (PPP) said Monday he is stepping down amid growing internal strife following the National Assembly’s vote to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol.

PPP leader Han Dong-hoon made the announcement during a press conference after an impeachment motion against Yoon was passed 204-85 on Saturday over his botched imposition of martial law on Dec. 3.

The results showed 12 PPP lawmakers likely broke from their party line to vote in favor of impeachment. Han expressed support for Yoon’s impeachment Thursday despite his earlier calls for the president’s “orderly” exit.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

The process to complete the impeachment of President Yoon by the Constitutional Court will begin on December 27th:

This composite image features the justices of the Constitutional Court who will deliberate on a parliamentary motion to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol. The justices are seen arriving for work at the court in Seoul on Monday. Clockwise from top left: Cheong Hyung-sik, Moon Hyung-bae, Kim Bok-hyeong, Chung Jung-mi, Lee Mi-sun and Kim Hyung-du. (Yonhap)

The Constitutional Court of Korea announced Monday that it would prioritize President Yoon Suk Yeol’s impeachment trial, setting the first preparatory hearing for Dec. 27 at 2 p.m.

Lee Jin, director general for the Constitutional Court’s Public Information Office, said in a press briefing Monday that justices Lee Mi-sun and Jeong Hyung-sik have been chosen as the two lead justices to oversee the evidence examination and arguments.

The chief justice, who leads the ruling by drafting the resolution and preparing arguments, has not been disclosed by the court. The chief justice is selected through a random draw.

But according to news reports, Jeong, who was appointed as justice by Yoon in 2023, has been designated as chief justice.

It is not mandatory for the court to reveal the chief justice, but they did in 2017 with ex-President Park Geun-hye’s impeachment case, citing the “severity of the issue.”

The court has also formed a task force comprising 10 constitutional researchers, led by a senior researcher. It added that it would also secure investigation records from the prosecutors and police in advance.

Preparations are underway to deliver a copy of an impeachment trial bill to Yoon and request his reply, the court added, though it is not compulsory for Yoon to do so.

It is highly likely that Yoon does not show up at the Dec. 27 hearing since it is a preparatory procedure. But he must attend the public hearing of his trial and participate in the oral pleading. If he fails to appear, the date needs to be reset.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.