South Korea: President Succumbs to Scandal

If a presidential election is triggered, opinion polls favor liberal opposition politician Moon Jae-in, who lost the 2012 race to Park.

Expectations are high that the ruling will be announced by Monday, the final day of Acting Chief Justice Lee Jung-mi’s tenure. The court’s proceedings were televised live as the verdict was pronounced.

Thousands of Park’s supporters angrily reacted to the verdict, shouting and hitting police officers with flag poles and climbing on buses the police used to create a perimeter protecting the court.

Ms Park was impeached on December 9th on charges of letting her friend of 40 years Choi Soon-sil meddle in state affairs.

Ms Park has been accused of colluding with a friend who allegedly pressured big companies to give money in return for government favours.

FILE – South Korean President Park Geun-hye speaks during an interview at the Presidential Blue House in Seoul Sept. 16, 2014.

If the judges were to reject the impeachment, a regular election is scheduled to replace the term-limited Park in December, and she could remain in office until February of 2018.

An early presidential election is now to be held within 60 days, in accordance with the South Korean constitution. Cheers meanwhile rose from a jubilant anti-Park camp, striking gongs and dancing to chants of “We won”.

The decision came at the same time that Choi Soon-sil publicly apologised to Park, although her legal representatives continue to deny that Choi – who is now under arrest and awaiting trial – received any monies under false pretences. But five years later her father’s 18-year rule came to an end when he was shot over dinner by his spy chief. She is the second president to go through the impeachment process. “Security service will be provided, but she will not receive a pension and won’t be able to hire a secretary to help her after the presidency”.

South Korea’s defense minister has ordered the military to be on alert for possible North Korean provocations attempting to exploit “unstable situations at home and overseas”.

In the face of the growing scandal, 30 lawmakers had left the former Saenuri Party, which had 126 lawmakers then, to create the Bareun Party, distancing themselves from the former president.

“At least, Washington and Beijing will now be able to start a relationship with the South Korean government they know what to expect from”.

The trial, the second of its kind after former President Roh Moo-hyun’s impeachment case, has lasted three months, with a total of 20 hearings bringing in 25 witnesses for courtroom questioning.