Court under pressure as political turmoil continues to grip the nation
The Constitutional Court is expected to deliver its ruling on the impeachment trial of President Yoon Suk Yeol on either Thursday or Friday, legal experts said Monday.
As of Monday, the Constitutional Court had heard and deliberated on the case for 93 days since it received the impeachment motion against Yoon passed by the opposition-controlled National Assembly on Dec. 14.
The deliberation process on Yoon’s case is the lengthiest of South Korea's three presidential impeachment trials. In 2004 it delivered the verdict for President Roh Moo-hyun 63 days after receiving the motion from the Assembly, while in 2017 it took 91 days for President Park Geun-hye.
There is a 180-day time limit for the court to deliver a verdict on whether to reinstate Yoon or remove him from office in relation to his Dec. 3 martial law declaration.
However, one constitutional law expert projected a further delay in the delivering of the verdict, pointing out that the current eight-member bench is treading cautiously due to the sensitivity of the case.
“Throughout the Constitutional Court hearings, Yoon, as a defendant, has repeatedly brought up suspicions of election fraud by the National Election Commission as a main reason behind his surprise martial law declaration,” Hwang Do-ssu, a constitutional law professor at Konkuk University, told The Korea Herald on Monday.
“Yoon cannot be convicted of insurrection if there is any evidence found that could back up his claims that he declared martial law to protect the country’s democracy,” the Seoul-based expert added.
Yoon has accused the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea of "trying to overthrow free democracy" by recklessly impeaching members of his Cabinet and blocking his budget plans and key initiatives.
At the same time, the professor said Yoon was likely to be convicted of breaching the Martial Law Act, which is another potential charge against Yoon in addition to insurrection.
Even then, the eight-member bench is likely to be heavily divided over whether to remove Yoon from office, according to Hwang.
“It is going to take some time for the court to decide whether it is fair for them to completely remove Yoon from office, when there are other forms of punishments.”
Although the current court has eight justices with one seat vacant, the six-vote threshold remains to confirm Yoon's removal from office.
If the court plans to deliver its ruling on Yoon’s case by the end of the week, it is likely to announce the date of the verdict around Tuesday or Wednesday. It has traditionally announced when a verdict will come two or three days in advance. The announcement is made after the defendant is confirmed to have received and verified the date.
The Constitutional Court is also currently deliberating on the impeachment case of suspended Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, and is likely to deliver a ruling on that ahead of Yoon’s case, according to observers.
Partisan tension has been escalating in recent weeks ahead of the court's planned verdict on Yoon's impeachment case.
Hundreds of thousands of civilian protesters and opposition party lawmakers held a mass rally at Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul on Monday afternoon, calling for the court to remove Yoon from office.
Park Chan-dae, floor leader of the Democratic Party, who took stage in front of the protesters, said that the court must swiftly announce the date of the verdict and oust Yoon to "reaffirm" South Korea's democracy.
"I urge the Constitutional Court justices to make a swift and firm decision based on their conscience. I also call for them to reaffirm the fact that South Korea is a democratic country by immediately deciding on the date of the verdict and removing Yoon, who is guilty of insurrection, from office," Park said.
Anti-impeachment protestors also gathered in Jongno-gu around 11 a.m., calling for the court to reinstate Yoon. Yoon's avid supporters later held a separate series of press briefings in front of the Constitutional Court.
Meanwhile, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that Anguk Station on subway line No. 3, located near the Constitutional Court in Jongno-gu, will be temporarily closed on the day of the court's ruling. It announced other safety measures, including deploying up to 1,357 officials from the city government, fire and police departments, daily around the time of the court's anticipated ruling, at major subway stations.
mkjung@heraldcorp.com
