South Korea Adjourns First Day of Trial Deciding Yoon’s Fate

(Bloomberg) -- South Korea began a trial Tuesday to decide if President Yoon Suk Yeol will be permanently removed from office over his botched martial law declaration.

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The Constitutional Court’s first hearing to review whether to uphold parliament’s decision to impeach Yoon or restore his presidential powers was adjourned just four minutes after it began following the leader’s refusal to appear given his concerns over the risk of arrest.

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South Korean law states that if an impeached person doesn’t show up, the court must set a new date for a hearing before proceeding without their participation. The next hearing is scheduled for Thursday. The trial will likely take months to conclude, with a limit of 180 days.

Moon Hyung-bae, the acting chief of the Constitutional Court, said the trial will proceed even without Yoon’s attendance from the next hearing.

The trial’s outcome has major implications for the country’s leadership and the future course of policy. If the court decides that the impeachment motion is legal and valid, Yoon will be removed from office, triggering a presidential election within 60 days.

Yoon’s legal representatives had said the president wouldn’t appear for the first court hearing because of safety concerns. They cited the possibility that investigators might try to arrest him in a separate criminal probe while he was on his way to the court in Seoul.

“We cannot help but seriously question the fairness and neutrality of this trial,” lawyer Yoon Kab-keun told reporters after the hearing. The lawyer earlier told Bloomberg News in a text message that the president would attend the court any time once safety and security issues are resolved.

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South Korean investigators are trying to figure out how to arrest Yoon after their first try ended in a tense, hours-long standoff with his security team. It was the first attempt of its kind against a sitting South Korean president.

A second bid to take the president into custody could take place as early as Wednesday, South Korea’s Yonhap News reported. Yoon’s security team said it will do its best to avoid any violent confrontation with the law enforcement authorities, but added that it will follow existing security guidelines to respond to any “illegal execution” of a warrant.

Hours before the trial began, protesters — both for and against the president — gathered outside the court surrounded by police buses and personnel in a heightened security. Some held banners calling for a prompt arrest of the impeached leader while others displayed signs labeling the investigators’ arrest attempt as illegal.

The impeachment case is being reviewed by eight judges. Under South Korea’s constitution, at least six justices must approve Yoon’s removal from office. Citigroup Inc. economists expect a decision by mid-March, potentially leading to a presidential election in early or mid-May.

Past cases may offer some clues on timing. In 2004, former President Roh Moo-hyun was reinstated after a two-month review. In 2017, the impeachment of ex-leader Park Geun-hye was upheld after a three-month trial. Both did not appear for their impeachment trials.

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South Korea remains in deep political turmoil after Yoon’s martial law declaration on Dec. 3, the first such order in more than 40 years. The move plunged the country into a constitutional crisis, hurt the economic outlook and drew public outrage. He was impeached by the National Assembly on Dec. 14.

“The most urgent task for South Korea right now is the arrest and ouster of Yoon Suk Yeol,” said lawmaker Jung Chung-rai of the Democratic Party as he arrived at the court. Jung is representing parliament at the impeachment trial. “I trust that the esteemed judges of the Constitutional Court will swiftly deliberate the case and protect South Korea.”

Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok is now serving as acting president after Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who briefly stepped in to replace Yoon, was also impeached by the opposition-controlled parliament.

Yoon has pledged to fight in court to regain his power. “Whether they impeach me or investigate me, I will face them down with confidence,” Yoon said previously. “I will fight until the end.”

--With assistance from Kevin Dharmawan and Shinhye Kang.

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(Updates with statement from Yoon’s security team)

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