S. Korea’s Park said to flout constitution
Impeachment trial arguments begin
SEOUL, South Korea — Prosecuting lawmakers accused South Korean President Park Geun- hye of “broadly and gravely” violating the constitution as the Constitutional Court began hearing oral arguments Thursday in her impeachment trial.
While the lawmakers, functioning as prosecutors in the trial, argued that Park should be removed from the presidency, her lawyers said the accusations lacked evidence. Park is accused of colluding with a longtime friend to extort money and favors from companies and of allowing her friend to interfere with government affairs.
As the impeachment hearing was taking place, Park’s friend, Choi Soon- sil, appeared in another court in Seoul where she told the judge that she denies the allegations against her. Also in the courtroom were former presidential secretaries Ahn Jong- beom, who is accused of pressuring companies that gave tens of millions of dollars to foundations Choi controlled, and Jung Ho- sung, accused of passing government secrets — such as information on ministerial candidates — to Choi.
The chief prosecutor in the impeachment trial, lawmaker Kweon Seong Dong, said Park abused her position by “broadly and gravely” violating the constitution to commit corruption and to turn state affairs into a profit tool for her friend.
He said Park must be removed from office to repair the damage she has caused the country’s democracy.
Parliament voted Dec. 9 to impeach Park, suspending her powers and making the prime minister the government caretaker. The Constitutional Court has less than six months to decide if Park should be removed or reinstated, and if it removes her, an election has to be held within 60 days.
Park’s lawyer, Lee Joonghwan, said the accusations stated in the impeachment bill “lack evidence and fail to make legal sense” because they were based on allegations and media reports, not criminal convictions.
The hearing proceeded without Park, who refused to testify for the second time and cannot be forced to do so. The court had planned to hear testimony from four of Park’s former and current aides suspected of helping Choi, but only one appeared.
Besides the corruption allegations, the court will also hear accusations included in the impeachment bill that blamed Park for restrictions on media reporting and for government inaction during a 2014 ferry sinking that killed more than 300 passengers.
Yoon Jeon- chu, who has been Park’s aide since 2013, did not answer directly most of the questions asking about her interactions with Choi and what Park did on the day of the ferry disaster.
The court said it was not able to deliver subpoenas to former aides Ahn Bong- geun and Lee Jae- man, who both worked with Park for nearly 20 years since her days as a lawmaker, and said another current aide, Lee Yeong- seon, asked to appear later.
Briefing reporters, Kweon criticized the witnesses who he said deliberately avoided the hearing and denied accusations by Park’s lawyers that they were leaking investigation details to reporters.