SEOUL.- The ousted South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol on Monday rejected court summons to testify in the case against him for his failed attempt to impose martial law, which earned him suspension from office.
Yoon, removed from office by Parliament on Saturday, faces two judicial investigations on charges of “insurrection,” one by the prosecutor’s office and another by a joint team of police, the Defense Ministry and anti-corruption prosecutors.
Yoon, 63, was suspended by the South Korean Parliament on Saturday for his attempt to declare martial law on December 3, a move blocked hours later by the National Assembly.
Now, the Constitutional Court has six months to rule on whether or not to confirm Yoon’s dismissal and the high court began the process on Monday and set a preliminary hearing for December 27.
If the dismissal is confirmed, new elections will be held within two months.
Yoon’s decision, which sent the army to Parliament to prevent deputies from meeting, opened an acute political crisis and provoked massive demonstrations in South Korea, a recent democracy with a traumatic past of dictatorships.
Yoon — who is prohibited from leaving the country — and those close to him face life imprisonment or even the death penalty, if convicted by justice.
Prosecutors sent a second summons to Yoon on Monday to question him in the process for “insurrection” and abuse of power, after the conservative politician did not appear at a first summons.
The joint investigation unit also requested that the ousted president appear on Wednesday, but his office rejected the summons, Yonhap news agency reported.
Investigators may request an arrest warrant if you continue to refuse to appear.
Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung urged the constitutional court to “quickly process the impeachment proceedings.”
Lee, who heads the Democratic Party, said this is “the only way to minimize national unrest and alleviate the suffering of the population.”
Following Yoon’s ouster, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo took over as acting president and promised to exercise “stable governance.”
“The leader of a rebellion”
Meanwhile, the leader of the ruling People’s Power Party (PPP), Han Dong-hoon, announced his resignation from office and apologized to the population for “the emergency martial law incident.”
The police arrested this Sunday the current head of the Defense Intelligence Command and his predecessor in office, in relation to the investigation for “insurrection,” the Yonhap news agency reported.
Prosecutors also requested an arrest warrant against the head of the Army’s Special Warfare Command, Kwak Jong-keun, Yonhap reported.
Kwak is accused of sending special forces troops into Parliament during the attempt to institute martial law, triggering a clash between soldiers and legislative staff.
The South Korean parliament voted on Saturday to dismiss Yoon with the support of 204 of the 300 deputies of the National Assembly, thanks to pro-government parliamentarians who voted with the opposition.
At least 200,000 protesters, according to the police, gathered in front of Parliament, despite the sub-zero temperatures, awaiting the result, and exploded with joy upon learning it, according to AFP journalists at the scene.
Yoon stated in a televised speech on Saturday that he will take a “step aside” and called for an end to the “politics of excess and confrontation.”
The head of US diplomacy, Antony Blinken, said on Sunday that the dismissal demonstrates South Korea’s “democratic resilience.”
Shortly after, President Joe Biden called interim President Han to express that the alliance between the two countries “will continue to be the axis of peace and prosperity in the region.”
For its part, the North Korean state agency KCNA on Monday referred to Yoon as “the ringleader of a rebellion” and said his fate is in the hands of “the puppet Constitutional Court” of South Korea’s main ally, the United States.
Yoon initially defended martial law as a way to protect the country from the “threats” of the communist regime in North Korea, in the context of a struggle with the opposition over the budget.
