South Korea: presidential security chief resigns

The head of deposed South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s security detail, whose team prevented his arrest by investigators a week ago, resigned Friday, Acting Head of State Choi’s office said Sang-mok.

• Also read: South Korea: Yoon’s supporters camp outside his home to block his arrest

• Also read: South Korea: new mandate to arrest ousted President Yoon

• Also read: Political chaos deepens in South Korea after failed first attempt to arrest Yoon

On January 3, Mr. Yoon’s bodyguards formed a human chain to block access to prosecutors from the Corruption Investigation Office (CIO) and police officers, who came to seize Mr. Yoon in his residence in Seoul, where he has been holed up for weeks.

Park Chong-jun, head of the Presidential Security Service (PSS), submitted his resignation Friday morning “while taking part in a police interrogation,” a PSS official told AFP.

This was then accepted by interim President Choi Sang-mok, the latter’s office told journalists.

The police and investigators are preparing to try again to arrest Mr. Yoon thanks to a new arrest warrant obtained on Tuesday. The IOC said it was preparing “thoroughly”, and the police organized a preparation meeting for this purpose on Friday, according to the Yonhap agency.

“Under no circumstances should there be physical clashes or bloodshed” in the event of a new arrest attempt, Park Chong-jun called on Friday to the press.

The deposed president refuses to be questioned about his failed attempt to impose martial law on December 3, which plunged South Korea into a serious political crisis and put him under investigation for “rebellion “, a crime punishable by death.

Examination

Since his team blocked investigators from arresting Mr. Yoon, Mr. Park has twice ignored police summons to question him over allegations of obstruction. The police threatened him with an arrest warrant if he did not appear for questioning on Friday.

On Tuesday, the IOC obtained a new arrest warrant against Mr. Yoon, after the expiration of a first seven-day warrant the day before.

Mr. Yoon’s lawyers argue that the arrest warrant is “invalid and illegal” and challenge the IOC’s jurisdiction to investigate the matter. They affirmed that their client would no more comply with the second arrest warrant than with the first.

On the other hand, detractors of the right-wing leader, elected in 2022, are growing impatient and are also demonstrating regularly to demand his arrest.

The 64-year-old former star prosecutor officially remains the president of the country, and is only suspended while waiting for the Constitutional Court to validate or not his dismissal, voted on December 14 by the National Assembly.

Trial Tuesday

The Court set the start of the impeachment trial for Tuesday, which will take place even if the main person concerned does not appear.

The court has 180 days from Dec. 14, when it received the case, to decide whether to permanently dismiss Mr. Yoon or reinstate him as president.

If investigators successfully execute their arrest warrant, Yoon Suk Yeol will become the first sitting South Korean president to be arrested.

Mr. Yoon’s bodyguards stepped up security at his residential complex in the upscale Hannam neighborhood by installing barbed wire and bus barriers in front of the entrance gate.

Since December 31, hundreds of supporters of the ousted president have demonstrated day and night near his residence, braving freezing temperatures.

Mr. Yoon’s lawyers said Friday that guards “remain on alert 24 hours a day, seven days a week” for a new arrest attempt “despite immense pressure and stress.” .

They also claimed earlier that the deposed president was still inside his residence and could appear for trial before the Constitutional Court.

Polls show that the approval rating of Mr. Yoon’s People Power Party (PPP) is increasing as the crisis drags on.

According to a new Gallup poll released Friday, the PPP’s approval rating fell from 24 percent three weeks ago to 34 percent, while the opposition’s approval rating fell from 48 percent to 36 percent.