EPASouth Korea’s suspended leader Yoon Suk Yeol has made his first look at his impeachment test, where he denied ordering the arrest of legislators during his attempt to impose martial law.
Parliament voted to impeach Yoon last month, and last week the constitutional court began a trial to decide whether to permanently remove him from office.
Yoon is also facing a separate criminal investigation into whether he led an uprising. He has been detained since last week.
Safety was strong on Tuesday as Yoon was transported by van from the confinement centre, where he is being held, to the legal judge.
Police formed human walls and held up anti-riot barricades to stop hundreds of his supporters who had gathered nearby from getting too close. Last weekend saw violence as dozens of Yoon’s supporters clashed with law enforcers and broke into another court house.
On Tuesday, Yoon was asked if he had ordered military officers to “drag out” lawmakers from parliament on the evening he declared martial law, in order to prevent them from overturning his purchase.
He replied:” No. “
Military officers had previously alleged that Yoon had given such an attempt on 3 December, after legislators climbed fences and broke barriers to enter the parliament building and voting down Yoon’s military law charter.
” I am a person who has lived with a strong belief in democratic politics,” Yoon said in his opening comment on Tuesday.
” As the constitutional court exists to protect the constitution, I ask that you carefully examine all features of this situation,” he told the courts.
During the reading, which lasted nearly two hours, Yoon and his attorneys argued that the military law get was” a politeness that was not meant to be executed”.
Yoon had cited risks from “anti-state makes” and North Korea when he declared martial law, but it soon became clear that his walk had been spurred never by external challenges but by his own domestic social issues.
The lawyers prosecuting the case, who were selected by the parliament, accused Yoon and his lawyers for making “largely contradictory, irrational, and unclear” comments.
” If they continue to evade responsibility as they did today, it will only work against them in the impeachment trial and cause even greater disappointment among the public,” the prosecutors told reporters after the hearing.
Outside the courtroom, his supporters became more agitated and aggressive as they demanded that Yoon be released and restored to office immediately.
Those were forced to set up some distance from the court due to tight security. Waving their trademark combination of Korean and US flags, some wore Maga-style baseball caps embossed with the slogan” Make Korea Free Again”, an echo of the campaign slogan used by US President Donald Trump.
Some of their chants included calls for the leader of South Korea’s main opposition party, Lee Jae Myung, and the investigator leading Yoon’s criminal case to be executed.
Several of the supporters told the BBC they believed Yoon’s martial law declaration was an attempt to protect the country’s democracy.
They accused the opposition party of being pro-China and pro-North Korea, and for wanting to turn South Korea into a communist country.
” This is a conflict between people who pursue communism and people who pursue democracy,” said Wongeun Seong, a 49-year-old businessman who joined the protest on the way back from a lunch meeting.
Former defence minister Kim Yong-hyun, who reportedly suggested martial law to Yoon, will testify during the next hearing on Thursday.
Yoon will be removed from office if at least six of the eight-member constitutional court bench votes to uphold the impeachment. A presidential election must then be called within 60 days.
South Korea has been in political chaos since 3 December. Thousands of protesters and supporters of Yoon have taken to the streets multiple times despite the winter cold.
The crisis has hit the country’s economy, with the won weakening and global credit rating agencies warning of weakening consumer and business sentiment.
Additional reporting by Hosu Lee in Seoul