By Hyunjo Jin and Josh Smith
SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea’s leadership crisis deepened on Sunday as prosecutors named President Yun Suk-yeol as the subject of a criminal investigation over last week’s attempted martial law, media reports said, and his former defense minister was arrested.
Yun survived an impeachment vote in the opposition-led parliament late on Saturday, triggered by a brief attempt to impose martial law on Tuesday, but the leader of his own party said the president would effectively be removed from his duties before finally stepping down. .
The proposal, which won tacit approval from Yun’s appointed prime minister on Sunday, drew condemnation from opposition lawmakers who said it was another unconstitutional power grab to delegate power without resignation or impeachment.
Thousands of people rallied outside the parliament in Seoul on Sunday to demand the impeachment and arrest of Yun and the dissolution of his ruling party.
Yun’s declaration of martial law on Tuesday plunged Asia’s fourth-largest economy and a key US military ally into its biggest political crisis in decades, threatening to tarnish South Korea’s reputation as a democratic success story.
The leader of Yun’s People’s Power Party, Han Dong-hoon, said at a press conference with the prime minister on Sunday that Yun would not be involved in foreign and other state affairs until he steps down.
But National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik said it was unconstitutional to delegate presidential powers to the prime minister and the ruling party without impeachment. Wu proposed a meeting of the rival parties to discuss ways to immediately suspend Yun’s presidency.
The main opposition Democratic Party has called for the immediate suspension of Yun’s presidency and his power to control the military. The DP demanded the arrest of Yun and the military officials associated with him who were involved in the martial law fiasco.
Yun shocked the nation on Tuesday night when he granted the military emergency powers to root out what he called “anti-state forces” and obstructive political opponents. He rescinded the order six hours later, after parliament defied military and police cordons and unanimously opposed the decree.
criminal investigation
Yonhap news agency reported that prosecutors had “booked” Yoon, a process in South Korea that involves officially naming the subjects of an investigation.
The prosecutor’s office was immediately contacted for comment on the report.
Three minority opposition parties have filed complaints with prosecutors against Yun, former defense minister Kim Yong-hyeon and martial law chief Park Ahn-soo, accusing them of rebellion. The crime of leading a rebellion is punishable by death or life imprisonment with or without prison labour.
Kim, who stepped down on Wednesday after Yun lifted martial law, was seen as a central figure in the debacle. He proposed martial law to the president, the senior official said in his impeachment statement.
The prosecutor’s office’s special investigation team arrested Kim on Sunday and seized his cell phone, according to a brief statement to reporters. Before the arrest, investigators questioned Kim, who turned himself in voluntarily at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office at 1:30 a.m. Sunday (1630 GMT Saturday), Yonhap news agency reported.
National police raided Kim’s office on Sunday as part of an investigation into allegations of treason against Yun and top ministers, Yonhap said.
Opposition lawmakers claim Yun mobilized the military to block a vote by lawmakers seeking to repeal what they say was an unconstitutional martial law decree.
military crisis
Hours before Saturday’s impeachment vote, Yun addressed the nation in a televised address, apologizing for declaring martial law and saying he would leave his fate in the hands of his party.
Han said the comments were effectively a promise to leave office early, adding that the ruling party would consult the prime minister to manage state affairs.
Prime Minister Han Dak-su said on Sunday that the cabinet would do its best to “maintain trust with our allies,” meaning the United States and Japan.
The ruling party has offered few details of its plan to prevent Yun’s impeachment but to keep him in power, adding further confusion to the crisis over presidential power.
To reassure the public, several military leaders, including the acting defense minister, have said they will refuse any order to impose another round of martial law.
The Defense Ministry did not respond to repeated questions from foreign media on Sunday about who is now the commander-in-chief of South Korea’s military, one of the largest in the world and a joint command with the United States.
“I think (military commanders) are very disappointed, some of them feel betrayed. It will take a lot of work to restore the confidence of the military,” said Chun In-bum, a retired lieutenant general. South Korea’s army and former head of the country’s special forces, who blames politicians for the unrest.
“I resent the fact that they use the military to do their job, and it was a bad decision to use the military to solve a political problem,” Chun said.
Analysts say the leadership crisis threatens allied efforts to contain a nuclear-armed North Korea.
“North Korea is likely to take a wait-and-see approach to these developments, but it is possible that Pyongyang will try to use units in Seoul,” said Leif-Erik Isley, a professor at Seoul’s Eha University.