The impeachment trial of South Korea’s suspended president, Yoon Suk Yeol, begins on Tuesday, with the constitutional court set to weigh whether to strip him of his presidential duties over a failed martial law bid.
Yoon’s December 3 power grab plunged South Korea into its worst political crisis in decades, after he directed soldiers to storm parliament in an unsuccessful bid to stop lawmakers voting down his suspension of civilian rule.
He was impeached soon after and suspended from duty, but has gone to ground inside the presidential residence since, refusing summonses from investigators probing him on insurrection charges and using his presidential security team to resist arrest.
Lawmakers also impeached Yoon’s stand-in last month, Han Duck-soo, plunging the country further into political instability, and the current acting president, Choi Sang-mok, has appeared unwilling to wade into the standoff, instead urging all parties to negotiate for a solution.
The trial’s first hearing – out of five lasting until 4 February – is slated to begin at 2pm. The next hearings are scheduled to take place on 16, 21 and 23 January, and 4 February.
Legal experts say the court will decide two issues, whether Yoon’s martial law declaration was constitutional and, if not, whether it amounted to insurrection.
“This impeachment case focuses solely on the martial law situation, so the facts are not particularly complex,” lawyer Kim Nam-ju told AFP.
But the court has 180 days to make its ruling, starting from 14 December, when it received the case on whether Yoon violated the constitution and the martial law act.
Yoon’s legal team said he would not appear at the first hearing over purported safety concerns, saying he would be willing to appear at a later date if security issues were ironed out.
“Concerns about safety and potential incidents have arisen. Therefore, the president will not be able to attend the trial on January 14,” lawyer Yoon Kab-keun said in a statement sent to AFP on Sunday.
The trial will continue in his absence if he does not appear.
Former presidents Roh Moo-hyun and Park Geun-hye did not appear for their impeachment trials in 2004 and 2016-2017, respectively.
Yoon’s lawyers have argued the court must utilise the full 180 days – specifically to examine what “led to the declaration of martial law”.
Separate to the trial, a joint team of investigators from the Corruption Investigation Office (CIO) – which is probing Yoon over allegations of insurrection – and police are preparing a fresh attempt to arrest Yoon.
An earlier attempt failed after Yoon’s presidential guards blocked access to investigators.
If the new warrant is executed successfully, Yoon would become the first sitting South Korean president to be arrested.
If eventually convicted in that case, Yoon faces prison or even the death penalty.
The CIO said it would “prepare thoroughly” for its second attempt to arrest Yoon and warned that anyone obstructing them could be detained.
The National Office of Investigation, a police unit, sent a note to high-ranking police officials in Seoul requesting they prepare to mobilise 1,000 investigators for the fresh attempt, the Yonhap news agency reported.
Meanwhile, Yoon’s guards have reinforced his Seoul compound with barbed wire installations and bus barricades.
Yoon’s legal team has also sought to put pressure on police to avoid being involved in the arrest attempt.
His lawyers released a statement on Tuesday saying officers would be “in violation of multiple laws” if they proceeded to execute the “illegal warrant” to detain Yoon.
“We strongly urge the police, who are not obligated to follow investigative directives from the CIO, not to degrade themselves into mere enforcers of illegal actions,” they said.
Late Sunday, the CIO sent a letter to the defence ministry and presidential security service saying anyone blocking Yoon’s potential arrest “may face criminal charges” for obstruction and abuse of authority.
