- Title: South Korean court holds final hearing on President Park's impeachment case
- Date: 30th December 2016
- Summary: SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA (DECEMBER 30, 2016) (REUTERS) MEMBERS OF IMPEACHMENT COMMITTEE AND JOURNALISTS AT NEWS BRIEFING KWON (SECOND FROM LEFT) STANDING AT PODIUM WITH OTHER MEMBERS OF IMPEACHMENT COMMITTEE JOURNALISTS SEATED (SOUNDBITE) (Korean) LEADER OF SAENURI LEGISLATORS ON THE PARLIAMENTARY IMPEACHMENT PROCEEDINGS COMMITTEE, KWON SUNG-DONG, SAYING "We have a plan to ask again, if we decide that we cannot find the reasons for presidential impeachment. For now, though, the justice department doesn't find it necessary, so we decided to defer to the court's decision." JOURNALISTS TYPING LEE WALKING TOWARD PODIUM AND SPEAKING (SOUNDBITE) (Korean) LAWYER OF SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENT PARK GEUN-HYE, LEE JOONG-HWAN, SAYING: "Regarding the Sewol ferry accident, there is trial record of the police and a government official of the marine department. The record is a closed case. There's no chance it will be changed." LEE STANDING AT PODIUM EXTERIOR OF SOUTH KOREAN CONSTITUTIONAL COURT SIGN READING (Korean): "THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT"
- Embargoed: 14th January 2017 07:37
- Keywords: South Korea court Park President Park Park Geun-hye trial impeachment hearing
- Location: SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA
- City: SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA
- Country: South Korea
- Topics: Government/Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA0025F2RAKL
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:South Korea's Constitutional Court on Friday (December 30) held its final preparatory hearing on President Park Geun-hye's impeachment case.
Park was indicted in a December 9 parliamentary vote by a wider-than-expected margin after being accused of colluding with friend Choi Soon-sil to pressure big businesses to make contributions to non-profit foundations backing presidential initiatives.
Park, whose father ruled the country for 18 years after seizing power in a 1961 coup, has denied wrongdoing but apologised for carelessness in her ties with Choi who is facing her own trial.
The Constitutional Court must decide whether to uphold parliament's December 9 motion to impeach Park, which could take up to 180 days and, if successful, trigger an election two months later.
"We have a plan to ask again, if we decide that we cannot find the reasons for presidential impeachment. For now, though, the justice department doesn't find it necessary, so we decided to defer to the court's decision," Kwon Sung-dong, a leader of the ruling Saenuri Party legislators on the parliamentary impeachment proceedings committee, said after the final hearing.
Park's popularity has sunk to near record lows since the influence-peddling scandal blew up, but many South Koreans already had doubts about her leadership, partly because of a 2014 ferry disaster in which 300 people, most of them school children, were killed.
"Regarding the Sewol ferry accident, there is trial record of the police and a government official of the marine department. The record is a closed case. There's no chance it will be changed," said Lee Joong-hwan, a former prosecutor who is part of the team representing Park.
The Constitutional Court is expected to begin hearing arguments next week on the parliamentary impeachment vote against Park who could become the first elected South Korean leader to be thrown out of office. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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