1 of 8 | Impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol attended the ultimate listening to of his impeachment trial on the Constitutional Courtroom in Seoul on Tuesday. Picture by Thomas Maresca/UPI | License Picture
SEOUL, Feb. 25 (UPI) — South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol made a closing assertion at his impeachment trial Tuesday, apologizing to residents for his short-lived declaration of martial regulation, however he defended the transfer as a last-ditch try to avoid wasting the county from the “anti-state tyranny” of the opposition Democratic Get together.
Yoon arrived on the Constitutional Courtroom within the late afternoon in a motorcade from Seoul Detention Middle in Uiwang, simply south of the capital, the place he has been in custody since final month.
The session, which was broadcast stay, featured closing arguments from Yoon’s protection and the authorized group for the Nationwide Meeting, who known as on the court docket to uphold their Dec. 14 impeachment vote.
Allowed a closing assertion with no time restrict, Yoon spoke for 67 minutes. He apologized to residents for inflicting “confusion and inconvenience” together with his surprising Dec. 3 martial regulation declaration, however claimed he solely meant it to ship a message to the general public.
“The declaration of martial regulation was a declaration that this nation is in a state of nationwide disaster,” Yoon mentioned.
The previous prosecutor cited nefarious actions from North Korean brokers and blamed the opposition Democratic Get together for obstructing his agenda and paralyzing the federal government.
“Exterior forces infringing upon our sovereignty, together with North Korea, and anti-state forces inside our society are in league with one another, severely threatening nationwide safety and continuity,” he mentioned.
The Nationwide Meeting’s impeachment panel accused Yoon of violating the Structure by declaring martial regulation within the absence of a nationwide emergency and ignoring procedures comparable to notifying parliament.
“All the nation watched the armed martial regulation forces’ violent acts stay on tv,” Democratic Get together Rep. Jung Chung-rae, the top of the panel, mentioned in his closing assertion.
“President Yoon tried to destroy the Structure and violate the Nationwide Meeting,” Jung mentioned. “He ought to be dismissed for the sake of democracy and nationwide improvement.”
Yoon denied that he ordered the elimination or arrest of lawmakers on the night time of his declaration and identified the transient period of time — simply two hours — that the navy was deployed.
“The declare by the opposition get together that I seized management of the Nationwide Meeting and tried to start out an rebel is nothing greater than a political propaganda operation,” Yoon mentioned.
“That is really an unprecedented fraudulent impeachment,” he added.
The 64-year-old additionally outlined a lot of conspiracies which have animated his base of right-wing supporters, together with unsubstantiated claims of election fraud.
Close to the courthouse, massive crowds of pro-Yoon protesters chanted for the impeachment to be dropped and held up “Cease the Steal” indicators alongside South Korean and American flags.
Tuesday’s listening to was the ultimate continuing within the weeks-long trial. The Constitutional Courtroom will determine whether or not to uphold the impeachment or reject it and return Yoon to workplace. A choice is broadly anticipated by mid-March, primarily based on the timelines of two earlier impeachment proceedings.
In 2004, then-President Roh Moo-hyun was impeached by parliament, however the Constitutional Courtroom didn’t again his elimination. Former President Park Geun-hye was impeached and faraway from energy by the court docket in 2017. In each circumstances, the judges returned a choice in roughly two weeks.
If Yoon is eliminated, South Korea should maintain a presidential election inside 60 days. The president can also be dealing with a felony trial on costs of rebel, which started final week.
Supporters of impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk-Yeol maintain a rally close to the Constitutional Courtroom in Seoul on February 25, 2025. Picture by Thomas Maresca/UPI | License Picture