Supporters of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol gather in Seoul on January 5, 2025, to protest his impeachment. AHN YOUNG-JOON / AP Thousands of supporters and detractors of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, suspended from office, braved the snow on Sunday, January 5, in Seoul, on the eve of the expiration of his mandate. he was arrested for his failed attempt to impose martial law at the beginning of December. In front of his residence, his faithful gathered in large numbers to demand the annulment of his dismissal by the National Assembly, despite the cold and the white coat with which the capital was covered during the night. His opponents are demanding his arrest, after a first unsuccessful attempt by investigators, defeated on Friday by the presidential guard. They have until the last second, Monday (4 p.m. in Paris) to execute the arrest warrant issued against him in order to force him to answer questions about his brief imposition of martial law. Mr. Yoon, aged 64, is the subject of several investigations, including one for “rebellion” due to his coup on the night of December 3 to 4, which revived the painful memory of the military dictatorship. In the National Assembly, surrounded by soldiers, a sufficient number of deputies managed to vote for a motion demanding the lifting of the state of exception. Under pressure from elected officials, thousands of demonstrators and constrained by the Constitution, Yoon Suk Yeol had to comply a few hours after his shock measure. Ministers’ warnings According to a prosecutor’s report consulted on Sunday by Agence France-Presse (AFP), he had ignored the disagreements of the then prime minister, the minister of foreign affairs and that of finance, Choi Sang-mok, currently acting president, before announcing his decision on television. On December 14, the National Assembly passed an impeachment motion against Mr. Yoon, leading to his immediate suspension. However, he officially remains the titular president while waiting for the Constitutional Court to rule on this dismissal by mid-June. Yoon Suk Yeol plans to appear before the Court “to give his point of view”, his lawyer, Yoon Kab-keun, announced in a press release on Sunday, while the court has scheduled five hearings, between January 14 and February 4. Neither Park Geun-hye nor Roh Moo-hyun, two other former presidents being prosecuted, attended their trials. Ms. Park was impeached and then imprisoned in 2017, while Mr. Roh was able to complete his term after winning his case. “A rebel force” The arrest of Mr. Yoon would be a first for a serving South Korean head of state. However, the investigators had to leave his home without him on Friday, the presidential guards having refused to comply with their mandate. The Senior Corruption Investigation Office (CIO) on Saturday asked Choi Sang-mok to order staff responsible for protecting Mr. Yoon to cooperate. “The presidential security service has violated the Constitution, effectively becoming a rebel force,” said Park Chan-dae, leader of the Democratic Party, the main opposition force and majority group in the Chamber. . Mr. Yoon’s legal team, for its part, intends to initiate proceedings against “those who committed illegal acts”, believing that the head of the IOC, Oh Dong-woon, attempted to execute the arrest warrant without having sufficient “authority”, according to Yoon Kab-keun. South Korea has continued to sink into political chaos since the beginning of December, the first interim president having also been dismissed on the 27th by deputies, who accused him of obstructing the procedures against Mr. Yoon. Choi Sang-mok has since served as the second acting president. In this context, the head of American diplomacy Antony Blinken is expected in Seoul, in particular for a meeting scheduled for Monday with his counterpart, Cho Tae-yul. 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 Le Monde with AFP Reuse this content
Author : News7
Publish date : 2025-01-05 09:30:47
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