South Korea’s suspended President Yeol will not attend first impeachment hearing

Kathmandu: South Korea’s suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol will not attend the first hearing of his impeachment trial next week because of safety concerns.

Yeol’s lawyer said on Sunday.  Yeol has been holed up in the presidential residence and protected by an elite guard force since being suspended and impeached last month, following a short-lived declaration of martial law that plunged the country into political chaos.

He refused to meet prosecutors and investigators and his presidential guard unit thwarted an attempt to arrest him following a tense, hours-long standoff earlier this month.

The Constitutional Court has scheduled five trial dates spanning January 14 to February 4, which will proceed in his absence if he does not attend.  ‘Concerns about safety and potential incidents have arisen. Therefore, the President will not be able to attend the trial on January 14’ said  lawyer Yoon Kab-keun in a statement sent to AFP.

‘The President is willing to appear at any time once safety issues are resolved,’ said lawyer Keun.’ The court will decide whether to uphold his impeachment or restore him to office.

Separately, investigators seeking to question Yoon on insurrection charges linked to his ill-fated martial law declaration are preparing another arrest attempt. His lawyers have repeatedly said an initial seven-day warrant and the new one they secured this week were both “unlawful”.

Investigators have kept secret the length of the new warrant, with local media reports saying it is longer than the previous seven days.

RSS/AFP