Tag: politics

Here is an interesting ruling from the Constitutional Court that these four officials impeached by the DPK controlled National Assembly should be reinstated:

The Constitutional Court of Korea on Thursday dismissed the National Assembly’s impeachment motion against Choe Jae-hae, who had been suspended from his duties as chair of the Board of Audit and Inspection, and three prosecutors, reinstating them immediately to their positions.

Thursday’s rulings were seen as a potential indicator of how the court might approach key issues in President Yoon Suk Yeol’s impeachment trial, including his claim that the main opposition party has obstructed state affairs by impeaching key administration officials.

The court had yet to announce the date for Yoon’s verdict as of Thursday afternoon.

Yoon has argued several times during his trial that the main opposition Democratic Party’s attempts to impeach these four officials were among the reasons behind his decision to declare martial law, claiming that a succession of impeachments of high-ranking officials has paralyzed state affairs.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

Korea is a country where judges tend to factor in public sentiment when making decisions. That is why you see both the DPK and PPP trying hard to court public opinon against and for Yoon before the court’s impeachment decision:

Police buses surround the Constitutional Court in central Seoul, Wednesday, to prevent violent clashes as a verdict on President Yoon Suk Yeol’s impeachment nears. Yonhap

As political gridlock deepens over the impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol, meaningful policy debate has all but vanished from Korea’s political landscape.

Following Yoon’s sudden release from detention last week ahead of the Constitutional Court’s ruling, both the ruling and opposition parties have escalated their rhetoric, with loud protests now dominating the National Assembly. With the Assembly’s role as a national representative body increasingly sidelined, concerns are mounting that the growing partisan conflict will not only undermine the court’s decision but further destabilize the country, according to experts.

The ruling People Power Party (PPP) said Wednesday that it would not directly confront the opposition’s escalating street protests calling for Yoon’s impeachment.

“If serious issues arise, the PPP will take collective action, just as the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) has. However, we will not resort to street protests or hunger strikes to pressure the Constitutional Court, as the DPK is doing. Instead, we will express our stance through official parliamentary channels,” PPP floor leader Kweon Seong-dong told reporters at the National Assembly in Seoul.

However, the conservative party’s decision appears to be driven more by political strategy than policy concerns. The party seems cautious that organizing an official rally could give a platform to the more extreme voices within Yoon’s support base, potentially alienating centrist voters, whose support is already fragile.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

https://x.com/SungYoonLee1/status/1898895841026572732

This is not much of a hunger strike considering the impeachment ruling from the Constitutional Court is imminent any day now:

Some lawmakers of opposition parties on Tuesday launched a hunger strike calling for a verdict by the Constitutional Court to officially remove impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol from office over his failed bid to impose martial law. 

A group of opposition lawmakers, including from the main opposition Democratic Party (DP), the Rebuilding Korea Party and the Progressive Party, went on the hunger strike urging the court swiftly dismiss Yoon, who was released from detention last Saturday.

Yoon’s release came as another court allowed him to stand trial without physical detention, citing some questions about the legality of investigations over his charges.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

I don’t think Yoon’s release is really going to impact the upcoming impeachment decision from the Constitutional Court. I think what will influence their decisionmaking is public sentiment. If public sentiment is overwhelmingly in favor of President Yoon I think it will be less likely he is convicted for impeachment:

As President Yoon Suk Yeol was released from detention on Saturday following a court decision, all attention is now channeled into how the release will affect the impeachment trial on his Dec. 3 martial law declaration, as any influence could add further complications.

The ruling People Power Party (PPP) and Yoon’s legal defense team hailed the decision as “confirmation” that there were serious violations of procedural rules throughout the investigation process, with some calling on the Constitutional Court to “correct” its own such violations before issuing a verdict on whether to formally oust the president from office.

On the other hand, the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) played down its significance, claiming that the ruling will have “no impact” on the impeachment trial and that any procedural flaws will not reverse the fact that his martial law imposition was unconstitutional.

On Friday, the Seoul Central District Court said it approved Yoon’s request for release after determining that the prosecution’s Jan. 26 indictment of him on insurrection charges, which allowed his arrest to be extended, had come hours after the 10-day initial detention period had already expired. It did not accept the prosecution’s usual way of calculating the duration of detention.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

It looks like ROK conservatives are preparing for President Yoon’s impeachment to be confirmed and are now communicating their platform for the upcoming snap election:

Labor Minister Kim Moon-soo, left, and Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo pay tribute to the 2.28 Democracy Movement Monument in Daegu, Friday. Yonhap

“The current Constitution, adopted in 1987, must change. People should not experience [DPK] Rep. Lee’s 29 impeachment motions or the president’s martial law imposition ever again,” Han told reporters Sunday. “Accomplishing this requires a willingness to make sacrifices on the part of those entrusted with important tasks.”

In an interview, Han said that if elected president, he would advocate for a constitutional amendment to introduce a four-year term with the possibility of reelection and would step down in 2028 to ensure that the next presidential and general elections coincide. He also said establishing a congress with two separate legislative chambers, similar to the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, is essential.

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon also echoed the idea, suggesting that whoever is the next president should resign after three years in office so as to align the two elections (presidential and general). Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo expressed his support for the four-year term with reelection and a bicameral legislature but disagreed with the proposal to shorten the next presidential term to three years.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

I wonder if Hong has an immunity deal of some kind in return for his testimony? If so it should be disclosed:

A list of politicians who President Yoon Suk Yeol allegedly ordered to be arrested has been at the center of the president’s impeachment trial this month along with the whistleblower who disclosed it as crucial evidence. Hong Jang-won, one of 16 witnesses summoned in Yoon’s impeachment, which began on Jan. 14, is the only figure who has been called into the Constitutional Court twice.

As a graduate of the 43rd class of the Korea Military Academy, Hong worked as South Korea’s top spy specializing in overseas intelligence and North Korea for over 30 years. (…….)

Hong appeared in court again on Thursday after the president’s legal team raised concerns about the credibility of his testimony. Hong’s testimony given on Feb. 4 drew significant attention as he claimed that Yoon ordered him to arrest key political figures on the night of the short-lived martial law declaration on Dec. 3.

“Take this opportunity to round them (the lawmakers) all up. The NIS will be given counterespionage authority, so for now, assist the Defense Counterintelligence Command (in doing so),” Yoon told him, according to Hong. (……..)

According to Hong, soon after Yoon called him at 10:53 p.m., he received a call from then-DCC chief Yeo In-hyeong, who listed the names of the people to be arrested that night.

“‘Is he insane?’ I thought, and then I stopped writing (people’s names) during the call,” Hong testified in court on Feb. 4, recalling his reaction as he heard the names.

“Lee Jae-myung, Woo Won-shik, Han Dong-hoon, Park Chan-dae, Cho Kook…” Hong listed the names without hesitance when Yoon’s lawyer asked who they were.

However, NIS Director Cho Tae-yong — Hong’s boss — raised strong doubts about the veracity of the alleged note during his own testimony as a witness on Feb. 13.

“I’ve checked the surveillance camera footage,” Cho told the court, adding that Hong was in his office at the time when he claims he was near Cho’s official residence.

Hong on Thursday admitted to a “slight error” in his memory.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link, but how do you have memory lapses with something as significant as this?