South Korea’s Constitutional Court begins review of President Yoon’s impeachment. If she confirms this motion, a presidential election must be held within two months.
Yoon Suk-yeol’s political future is now in the hands of the South Korean Constitutional Court. This Monday, it is holding a first meeting to discuss the timetable for the impeachment procedure targeting the deposed president. by parliament for its failed attempt to impose martial law.
The Constitutional Court has about six months to rule on the validity of the impeachment motion adopted Saturday evening by the deputies, who thus suspended the unpopular leader and sanctioned the brief martial law of the night of December 3 to 4.
“The first pre-trial hearing will take place on December 27, Friday, at 2 p.m. At this hearing, the court will obtain an investigation report from the prosecutor’s office and the police” explains Lee Jin, head of public affairs at the South Korean Constitutional Court.
If the Constitutional Court upholds the impeachment motion, Yoon Suk-yeol will be deposed and a presidential election must be held within two months. The winner would be invested the day after the result, without the usual transition period.
During this period of up to eight months, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo will act as interim minister. He is committed to doing everything possible to ensure “stable governance”.
Validation requires the support of at least six of the nine judgesbut the Court currently only has six, so they will have to vote unanimously in favor of this measure.
A Court under pressure from the street
However, the outcome is in little doubt according to most experts, as the violations of the Constitution and the law accused of the former star prosecutor are so blatant.
Major anti-Yoon protests have multiplied since his takeoveras did smaller rallies in its support, and protesters from both camps said they would continue to pound the streets until the Court’s ruling.
Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung said on Sunday that a quick decision was “the only way to limit the national unrest and alleviate the suffering of the population”.
A political star entangled in affairs that could, however, cost him his election, Lee Jae-myung is a favorite among analysts in the event of a new election.. In 2022, he lost to Yoon Suk-yeol by the narrowest margin in South Korean history.
Refusal to appear in court
*Yoon Suk-yeol is also under criminal investigation for “rebellion”a crime theoretically punishable by death, and is no longer allowed to leave the country*. He has “denied” to appear in court on Sunday, prosecutors having announced that they would summon him a second time.
In a separate proceeding, a team of investigators from the police, the anti-corruption agency and the Defense Ministry are also seeking to question Yoon Suk-yeol, according to the Yonhap news agency.
If Yoon Suk-yeol’s impeachment is confirmed, he would become the second South Korean president officially removed from office. For Park Geun-hye, who was the first to fall for corruption in 2017, the Court ratified Parliament’s decision ninety-two days after its vote.
There is, however, a reverse precedent. In March 2004, MPs also passed an impeachment motion against Roh Moo-hyun, but it was invalidated two months later by the Constitutional Court.
North Korea, which has been distiling its reactions in dribs and drabs since the start of the unrest in its neighbor, described Yoon Suk-yeol on Monday as a “leader of the rebellion”according to the official KCNA agency. As usual, Yoon Suk-yeol was also called a “puppet” by North Korean state media, which considers him to be under the thumb of the United States.