South Korea’s impeached President Yoon Suk-Yeol, who was arrested and suspended from office on charges of declaring martial law, appeared in court again on Tuesday for a hearing to decide whether or not to formally remove him from office.
Former Prosecutor Yoon had plunged democratic South Korea into a political crisis when he declared martial law on December 3, suspended civilian rule, and sent soldiers into parliament. His attempt to impose martial law lasted only about six hours, as the opposition-led parliament opposed the armed soldiers, rejected them, and later impeached him for the move.
As part of a separate criminal investigation, Yoon was detained in a dawn raid in mid-January on charges of sedition, making him the first South Korean head of state to be arrested. He is in custody but has been attending the impeachment hearing at the Constitutional Court. The hearing will determine whether or not to uphold his impeachment.
If the court upholds the impeachment, elections will have to be held within 60 days to elect a new president. A black SUV drove Yoon to the courthouse for the hearing, which began at 2:00 p.m. (0500 GMT) on Tuesday.
In previous hearings, Yun denied allegations that he ordered top military commanders to “kick” lawmakers out of parliament to prevent them from disobeying his orders. This has been denied by opposition lawmakers. He has argued that the short-lived military rule was not a ‘failed military regime’ but rather one that ‘ended somewhat sooner’ than he had expected.
Two former military commanders and a former intelligence agency officer are scheduled to testify as witnesses at Tuesday’s hearing. Hong Jang-won, a former deputy director of the National Intelligence Service, told lawmakers that orders were issued to arrest politicians, a claim that contradicts Yun’s denial that he had given such orders.
Yoon, 64, was indicted in January by prosecutors, accusing him of being the “main plotter of the rebellion.” He faces a separate criminal trial on those charges. Rebellion is not covered by presidential immunity. If convicted, he could face prison time or the death penalty.
