During a demonstration calling for the dismissal of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, in front of Seoul City Hall, December 12, 2024. ANTHONY WALLACE / AFP This is an unprecedented measure in South Korea, which illustrates the serious political crisis into which the country has fallen. The day after a third refusal by deposed President Yoon Suk Yeol to appear for questioning, the investigation services said, Monday, December 30, that they had asked the courts to issue an arrest warrant targeting the man who had in vain attempted to impose martial law. Investigators filed their request with a Seoul court, they said in a statement. Never since the end of the military dictatorship in 1987 have South Korean security forces attempted to arrest a sitting head of state. Dismissed by Parliament on December 14, Mr. Yoon remains formally in office even if he is currently suspended while waiting for the Constitutional Court to validate or not the decision of the deputies, and is prohibited from leaving the country. Read also | Article reserved for our subscribers The memory of the Gwangju massacre at the heart of the mobilization against martial law in South Korea Read later He is also the target of an investigation for rebellion, a crime punishable by death, for having imposed the martial law on December 3 and sent the army to Parliament to try to muzzle him, before backing down a few hours later under pressure from deputies and the street. In a letter submitted to the court requested by investigators, Yoon Suk Yeol’s lawyers denounced the request made on Monday. “The arrest warrant is unjustified because it was requested by an unauthorized agency and does not comply with the necessary conditions set out in the criminal procedure code,” Yoon Kab-keun told reporters, who believes that a “president in office cannot be prosecuted for abuse of power”. Tens of thousands of people in the streets of Seoul According to South Korean media, Mr. Yoon, 64, also refuses to acknowledge receipt of the summons sent to him by the Constitutional Court, which held a first hearing on Friday hearing on his case. The court has six months to confirm or overturn the president’s impeachment. If she opts for the first solution, a presidential election will have to take place within two months. While waiting for her to make a decision, the deputies dismissed, on Friday, the interim president in place since mid-December, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, whom they accuse of having tried to obstruct the investigation. The new interim head of state, Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok, promised to “put an end to the government crisis”, unprecedented for Asia’s fourth largest economy. Read also | Article reserved for our subscribers In South Korea, political chaos intensifies with the disputed dismissal of the interim president Read later Barely in office, the country’s third leader in less than a month was confronted with the air disaster the deadliest in the country with the crash of a Jeju Air Boeing upon landing at Muan airport, which left 179 dead and two survivors. Le Monde Mémorable Test your general knowledge with the editorial staff of “Le Monde” Test your general knowledge with the editorial staff of “Le Monde” Discover On Saturday, tens of thousands of people marched in Seoul in two separate demonstrations, for or against Yoon Suk Yeol. His detractors and the opposition, the majority in Parliament, are calling for his immediate arrest, encouraged by revelations about the coup by the president, who was a former prosecutor. Martial law discussed since March The indictment report for former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun, considered the person who pushed the president to impose martial law, claims that Mr. Yoon had authorized the army to open fire to enter Parliament. “Haven’t you come in yet?” What are you doing ? Break the door and take them out, even if it means shooting,” he said in a Dec. 3 phone call with Seoul military commander Lee Jin-woo, who was near Parliament, according to the prosecution. Read also | In South Korea: President Yoon authorized the army to shoot at Parliament Read later After martial law was declared, heavily armed soldiers stormed Parliament by scaling barriers, breaking windows and, for some, by landing there by helicopter. According to the report, the president also ordered military counterintelligence chief Gen. Kwak Jong-keun to “quickly enter inside” Parliament, destroying the gates “with an ax if necessary.” The document adds that Mr. Yoon is said to have discussed martial law as early as March with senior military officials. Le Monde with AFP Reuse this content
Author : News7
Publish date : 2024-12-30 20:03:10
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.