Thousands of South Koreans are expected to take to the streets of Seoul on Saturday in an increasingly chaotic political context the day after a failed attempt to arrest ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol, accused of “rebellion” for trying to impose martial law in early December.
• Also read: Drama and chaos in Seoul during failed attempt to arrest Yoon
• Also read: South Korea’s ousted president resists arrest
• Also read: South Korea’s ousted president resists arrest
Gatherings of detractors and supporters are planned in the city center from the beginning of the afternoon, on the main square of the capital and in front of Mr. Yoon’s home in particular.
On Friday, soldiers and security services blocked the investigators who came to his home to take him away, the operation launched early in the morning having been canceled after around six hours of negotiations and tensions.
An arrest of Yoon Suk Yeol would be the first of a sitting head of state in the country’s history, with the former star prosecutor officially remaining the president while waiting for the Constitutional Court to confirm or overturn his dismissal, adopted by deputies on December 14.
Suspended from his functions since, cloistered at home, he is accused of having shaken the young South Korean democracy on December 3 by proclaiming martial law by surprise, a coup which revived the painful memory of the military dictatorship.
In a parliament surrounded by soldiers, a sufficient number of deputies managed to come together to vote on a motion demanding the lifting of this state of exception. Under pressure from the Assembly, thousands of demonstrators and constrained by the Constitution, Yoon Suk Yeol had to repeal it a few hours after having declared it.
The unpopular deposed leader, 64, is the target of an investigation for “rebellion”, a crime theoretically punishable by the death penalty which does not fall under presidential immunity.
AFP
On Friday, the investigators who centralized the investigations into him, despite having a warrant, were defeated by some 200 soldiers and presidential guards. They left empty-handed around 1:30 p.m. (4:30 GMT), as hundreds of Yoon supporters had gathered at the scene.
-“There were minor and major physical altercations” between the two camps, said an official from the Corruption Investigation Office (CIO).
The agency has until Monday to execute a court-issued arrest warrant for Mr. Yoon to force him to answer questions about his failed attempt to impose martial law.
The issuance of this order already represented a first for a sitting South Korean president.
IOC officials have spoken of a possible new test before the deadline. If they fail, they will have to request a new mandate from the same court.
Constitutional trial on January 14
For its part, the Constitutional Court set January 14 for the opening of the impeachment trial against Yoon Suk Yeol, which will continue its course even without him. The court must rule by mid-June.
Mr. Yoon has so far rejected all summons in connection with his coup and his guard has repeatedly obstructed police searches, even though on warrant.
The deposed president still defends his shock decision of December 3 despite the serious political disorder that resulted from it, while the first interim president was also dismissed by Parliament, leaving the seat to the country’s number 3, Finance Minister Choi Sang -mok.
In a letter distributed Wednesday to his most radical supporters, present in front of his residence, Mr. Yoon promised to “fight until the very end,” repeating his speech against internal and external elements “threatening” South Korea which he had already held by declaring martial law.
North Korea, rather stingy in its reactions since the start of the unrest, judged on Friday that its neighbor was plunged into “chaos”.
The United States, Seoul’s most important ally, for its part called on political leaders to work for “stability”, saying it was ready to respond in the event of “provocation or threats from outside”, indicated during a press briefing by White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby.
The head of American diplomacy, Antony Blinken, is also expected in South Korea on Monday to meet his counterpart Cho Tae-yul and “reaffirm the unshakable alliance” between the two countries, according to the American State Department.
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