By Hyung-Jin Kim and Kim Tong-Hyung
Seoul, South Korea (AP) – The Constitutional Court of South Korea unanimously withdrew Yoon Suk Yeol from his functions on Friday, ending his tumultuous presidency and organizing a new election, four months after throwing the nation in turmoil with an unhappy declaration of martial law.
The verdict crowned a dramatic fall for Yoon, a former star prosecutor who became president in 2022, only one year after his entry into politics.
During a national television hearing, the head of the court, Moon Hyung-Bae, said that the bench of eight members had found that Yoon’s actions were unconstitutional and had a serious impact.
“By declaring martial law in violation of the Constitution and other laws, the accused brought back the history of the abuse of state emergency decrees, shocked the people and caused confusion in society, the economy, politics, diplomacy and all other areas,” said Moon.
“Given the negative impact on the constitutional order caused by the violation of laws by the defendant and its training effects, we note that the advantages of maintaining the Constitution by rejecting the defendant prevailing him from afar on the national losses against the dismissal of the president,” concluded the judge.
The demonstrators burst into jubilation and sorrow
Anti-Yoon demonstrators near the court broke out in tears and danced when the verdict was announced at the end of the morning. Two women were crying while they were hugging and an old man near them jumped on his feet and shouted with joy. The crowd then walked in the streets of Seoul.
Apart from the official Yoon residence, many supporters shouted, shouted and shouted to journalists when they saw the news of the verdict on a giant television screen. But they quickly cooled after their organizer pleaded for calm.
“We will not be shaken!” A protest leader shouted on stage. “Whoever accepts this decision and is preparing for a first presidential election is our enemy.”
No major violence was reported in the late afternoon.
“The political risks linked to the interior polarization and the instability of policies remain,” said Leif-Eric Easley, professor at Ewha University in Seoul. “But the unanimous decision of the Constitutional Court has removed a major source of uncertainty. Korean government institutions have resisted a volatile combination of legislative obstruction and executive overcoming which posed the greatest challenge to democracy of a generation. ”
Korea is faced with an election with deep divisions
An election will take place within two months for a new president. But a purpotor fracture on the dismissal of Yoon could complicate the efforts of South Korea to face crucial questions such as the prices of President Donald Trump and other “America First” policies, according to the observers.
Yoon said in a press release published via his defense team which he deeply regretted not meeting the expectations of the public, but ceased to explicitly accept the verdict. He was afraid that he would encourage efforts to resist his withdrawal, because he swore earlier to fight to the end.
He added that he would pray for the country and his people. “It was the greatest honor of my life to serve our nation,” said Yoon.
Yoon’s power of the power of the People’s Power said that he would accept the decision, but one of Yoon’s lawyers, Yoon Kap-Keun, described the decision as “completely incomprehensible” and a “pure political decision”.
Prime Minister Han Duck-Soo, the country’s head, has promised to maintain public security and order and ensure a smooth transition to the next administration.
The surveys show that Lee Jae-Myung, leader of the principal Liberal Democratic Party of the opposition, is the first favorite to win the next presidential election, although it is confronted with several trials for corruption and other accusations.
“It will be a difficult battle for the Conservative Party to win a presidential election in instruction,” said Duyeon Kim, principal analyst at the Center for a New American Security in Washington. “If Lee wins, South Korea foreign policy will probably be very different from what the United States and the countries sharing the same ideas appreciated during the presidency of Yoon because of the requirements of the progressive base.”
Lee hosted the decision and credited the South Korean people for having “protected our Democratic Republic”.
The crisis began with a night of chaos four months ago
The martial law only lasted six hours, but left a political crisis, to wink and to a disorder of diplomatic partners in the country.
After announcing the martial law late at night on December 3, Yoon, a curator, sent hundreds of soldiers to the National Liberal Opposition Assembly, electoral offices and other sites. Special operations soldiers broke windows in the Assembly and escaped demonstrators, arousing traumatic memories of the country’s past military rules among many South Koreans.
Enough legislators, some of which in the ruling party, have managed to enter the Assembly to voted unanimously Yoon’s decree.
Some high police officers and police officers sent to the Assembly said that Yoon had ordered them to drag the legislators to block the vote on his decree or to hold his political rivals. Yoon says that the troops were deployed in the assembly simply to maintain order.
Yoon was dismissed by the National Assembly on December 14. The Assembly accused him of having violated the Constitution and other laws by eliminating the activities of the Assembly, trying to hold politicians and by undermining peace across the country.
In his latest testimony during the hearing of the Constitutional Court, Yoon said that his decree was a desperate attempt to draw public support from his fight against the “wickedness” of the Democratic Party, which had hampered his program, dismissed the senior officials and reduced the government’s budget bill. He previously called the National Assembly “a lain of criminals” and “anti-state forces”.
The Constitutional Court ruled that Yoon violates the law of the Assembly to demand martial law was lifted, the freedom of the activities of political parties and the neutrality of the military. He also declared that Yoon’s political impasse with the opposition was not the type of emergency which required a martial law and that the Yoon decree lacked demanding legal procedures such as the deliberation by an official meeting of the cabinet.
Yoon still faces criminal charges
Yoon was charged with rebellion in the context of his decree, an accusation that bears the death penalty or a perpetuity imprisonment if it is found guilty. He became the first South Korean president to be arrested or charged during his duties.
Yoon was released from prison in March after a district court of Seoul canceled his arrest. This allows him to undergo an unanswered trial.
His withdrawal of his duties also costs Yoon the presidential immunity that protected him from most criminal proceedings. This means that he could face other criminal accusations, such as abuse of power, within the framework of his decree of martial law, according to certain observers.
The Associated Press writer, Foster Klug, contributed to this report.
Originally published:
California Daily Newspapers
