Now that the parliament has voted to impeach Park Geun-hye, the fate of her presidency is left to one unique entity that is rarely in the public eye: the Constitutional Court. A tough legal battle looms, as the president, embroiled in a corruption and nepotism scandal involving her secret confidante Choi Soon-sil, is determined to defend her job and name. Legal issues aside, observers say the court itself is stacked against forces that want Park gone as soon as possible. Two factors come into pl

Social Affairs Dec. 11, 2016

Now that the parliament has voted to impeach Park Geun-hye, the fate of her presidency is left to one unique entity rarely see in the public eye: the Constitutional Court. A tough legal battle looms, as the president, embroiled in a corruption and nepotism scandal involving her secret confidante Choi Soon-sil, is determined to defend her job and name. Legal issues aside, however, observers say the court itself is stacked against forces that want Park gone as soon as possible. Two factors come in

Social Affairs Dec. 10, 2016

Friday’s parliamentary vote on whether or not to impeach President Park Geun-hye is unlikely to involve a filibuster or physical brawls among rivalling lawmakers. According to the National Assembly on Thursday, no lawmakers have requested time to address the floor ahead of the ballot during a plenary session slated for 3:00 p.m. Friday. “Traditionally, the motion related to the seat of public officials does not require additional debate among those that approve and those that disapprove,” an off

Politics Dec. 8, 2016

South Korea’s top business tycoons on Tuesday rejected the notion their donations to two foundations controlled by President Park Geun-hye’s friend were bribes to the state head. Yet, some admitted the contributions were not 100 percent voluntary. 　Nine business leaders, including Samsung Group’s heir and de facto chief Lee Jae-yong, faced feisty lawmakers at a parliamentary hearing at the National Assembly over their alleged involvement in the scandal swirling around the president and her frien

Politics Dec. 6, 2016

President Park Geun-hye’s friend at the epicenter of South Korea‘s worst political crisis in recent memory has refused to take the witness stand in the upcoming parliamentary inquiry on Wednesday, dealing a blow to lawmakers’ efforts to investigate the influence-peddling scandal that has plunged the nation into a state of turmoil. The bipartisan panel of lawmakers probing the case said Monday they were notified by Choi Soon-sil’s attorney that she would not testify before lawmakers at a hearing

Politics Dec. 5, 2016

A bipartisan panel of lawmakers sought answers to questions surrounding President Park Geun-hye‘s alleged mishandling of state affairs during a parliamentary inquiry into a scandal involving Park, her longtime friend Choi Soon-sil and her former aides. Topping the agenda in Monday’s session was the president’s whereabouts on the day the Sewol ferry sank in 2014. Rumors are rife that Park might have received plastic surgery with assistance from military medical officers during the nation’s worst-

Politics Dec. 5, 2016

　An opposition coalition decided Friday to press ahead with a vote on parliamentary impeachment of President Park Geun-hye on Dec. 9, patching up cracks that erupted after the president’s surprise offer earlier in the week to cut her term short. 　The vote will take place as scheduled, they confirmed, regardless whether Park announces her plan for early departure. The president said on Tuesday that she is willing to resign if the political parties offer her a time frame and legal process for it,

Politics Dec. 2, 2016

The third-biggest People’s Party urged the National Assembly to propose an impeachment motion against President Park Geun-hye on Thursday, suggesting that the motion should be put to a vote no later than Monday. The decision came hours after the opposition coalition failed to reach consensus on when to submit the motion to the floor, which effectively killed chances of the impeachment ballot taking place at the parliament’s plenary session Friday. While Democratic Party lawmakers insisted that t

Politics Dec. 1, 2016

The opposition coalition Thursday failed to submit a motion to impeach President Park Geun-hye, which effectively killed chances of the impeachment ballot taking place at the parliament’s plenary session Friday. The failure came as two of the three parties -- the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea and the runner-up opposition People’s Party -- clashed over the timing of the vote, with the former insisting on immediate action and the latter calling for more time to secure enough votes. Alo

Politics Dec. 1, 2016

Opposition parties Tuesday reiterated their commitment to impeaching President Park Geun-hye, dismissing Park’s pledge to abandon her presidency as a ploy to avoid the looming parliamentary impeachment. The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea and the runner-up People’s Party accused the president of not giving a specific timeline for her resignation to deflect the people’s attention away from the impeachment process. In a speech earlier in the day, the president asked the National Assembly

Politics Nov. 29, 2016

Opposition parties Monday put the final touches on the draft of the impeachment motion against President Park Geun-hye, but they are still unclear when it will be put to a vote.It is a choice of between this Friday or next, but the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea emphasized prudence, as winning the overwhelming support of the parliament is more ideal than rushing to pass the motion.  “I understand that the people are eager to pass the motion as quickly as possible, but the key is how m

Politics Nov. 28, 2016

　A group of ruling Saenuri Party lawmakers critical of President Park Geun-hye announced Friday that they have gathered enough votes to pass an impeachment motion against her.  　The dissenting group said that more than 40 lawmakers would join the opposition parties and independents, whose seats total 172 after one Saenuri lawmaker quit the party Tuesday, in voting for the motion. At least 28 votes from Saenuri are needed to meet requirement of 200 votes in the 300-seat Assembly.　Rep. Hwang Young

Politics Nov. 25, 2016

The United Nation’s Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has hinted at the possibility of running for next year’s presidential election, fueling speculation about which political group he would represent amid the record-low popularity of President Park and her governing Saenuri Party. In an interview with CNN on Tuesday, the outgoing UN chief said that he would “think about” his role in South Korea after his term ends on Dec 31. Ban also noted that he has “grave concern” over the nepotism scandal tied

Politics Nov. 24, 2016

While President Park Geun-hye’s political fortunes have fallen drastically over a nepotism scandal involving her confidante Choi Soon-sil, one presidential aspirant is seeing a major boost: Seongnam City Mayor Lee Jae-myung.A firebrand of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, Lee was the first politician to demand the resignation and punishment of Park for letting her friend Choi meddle in state affairs. Local polls released Thursday showed the outspoken politician ranked third among pr

Politics Nov. 24, 2016

An impeachment trial seems the only way out of the political stalemate in South Korea. With President Park Geun-hye determined to cling to power, opposition parties are campaigning for a parliamentary impeachment motion whose passage will set the stage for the nation’s second impeachment trial in history. The Korea Herald interviewed six prominent law experts over the phone to find out what to expect from the looming trial. The following are excerpts from the interviews: The Korea Herald: Does P

Politics Nov. 23, 2016