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Martial law, arrest and impeachment of President Yoon: the culmination of events in South Korea
Kyiv • UNN
President Yun Seok-yol is arrested on suspicion of treason after a failed attempt to impose martial law. He refuses to be interrogated and may lose his position through impeachment.
South Korea is challenging the constitutionality of the “emergency martial law” as Yoon's impeachment trial begins. Meanwhile, detained South Korean President Yun Suk-yol will not participate in further interrogations on Thursday.
Transmits to UNN with reference to Globo and France4.
Details
On Thursday, the day after his dramatic arrest over the failed declaration of martial law, South Korean President Yun Seok-yol faced another round of questioning, but his lawyers said he would not participate.
Context
The South Korean Agency for Investigation of Crimes Against Senior Public Officials announced that it had executed an arrest warrant for President Yun Seok-yol, who had taken refuge in the presidential residence in Gangnam-dong, Seoul, at 10:33 a.m. on January 15 on suspicion of treason.
The chaos that began after President Yoon declared martial law on December 3 last year is likely to develop in two main directions. The first is the investigation of Yun on treason charges and the impeachment hearing at the Constitutional Court. Yun is likely to be found guilty of treason. Public opinion against Yun has also deteriorated as a result of his arrest, increasing the likelihood that the Constitutional Court will impeach him.
Immediately after Yoon's arrest, the office of the South Korean president released a statement that lasted less than three minutes. Yoon called the arrest procedures “illegal” and insisted that he was arrested “not according to illegal procedures, but to avoid unfortunate bloodshed.
According to South Korean media, the interrogation lasted until 21:00, but Yoon refused to testify. Later, Yoon was transferred to the Seoul colony.
Investigators from the Corruption Investigation Office (CIO) were scheduled to continue questioning Yoon on Thursday at 14:00 local time (05:00 GMT), but his lawyer said he was unable to do so due to health reasons, Yonhap news agency reported.
“President Yoon is not feeling well, and he fully explained his position yesterday, so there is nothing more to question him about,” Yoon told Yonhap's Kab Keun, referring to his decision on Wednesday not to answer questions.
By the morning of the 17th, the agency will decide whether to request an arrest warrant from the court, which will allow the detention to continue.
A former senior South Korean government official said: “Yoon is responsible for causing chaos on the 15th.” The former high-ranking official commented on the situation at the presidential residence on the 15th: “It was just like the emergency on the night of December 3 last year, when martial law (emergency martial law) was declared.”
The former official said that the reason why Yoon was so reluctant to be arrested was that “he seriously believed that he could return to the presidency after the hearing at the Constitutional Court.
If he is arrested and the investigation into the treason charges moves forward, public opposition to Yun will intensify. This will also affect the Constitutional Court proceedings, potentially leading to Yun's dismissal from the presidency.
On the other hand, Yun's arrest on 15 November increased the likelihood that he will be impeached at the upcoming Constitutional Court hearings.
Kim Jong-un, a veteran of South Korean politics and a five-term member of the National Assembly, also believes that the Yoon administration is already “finished” politically before it has even passed legal scrutiny.
HelpHelp
President Yun shocked the nation late on December 3 when he declared martial law, claiming that he needed to protect South Korea “from the threats posed by North Korea's communist forces and eliminate anti-state elements.
He deployed troops to parliament, but lawmakers defied him and voted against the move. Yoon lifted martial law only six hours later, and was later impeached by parliament.
The 64-year-old ousted leader then spent weeks trying to avoid arrest by staying in his apartment complex under the protection of loyal members of the Presidential Security Service (PSS).
On Wednesday, after his arrest, he remained defiant, posting on Facebook what he claimed were his recordings from his residence, repeating unproven claims of election fraud.
Shortly after Yun was taken in a convoy to the CIO's office, investigators began questioning Yun, but later said he had exercised “his right to remain silent.
His supporters also refused to accept the arrest.
Recall
In South Korea , investigators arrested suspended President Yun Seok-yol at his residence in Seoul. The arrest is related to the imposition of martial law in December and his subsequent absconding from the investigation.
South Korea: President Yoon faces impeachment this Saturday13.12.24, 13:04 • 15409 views