South Korea's Constitutional Court to Conduct Initial Pretrial Hearing for PM Han's Impeachment on January 13
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Seoul, Jan 6 (NationPress) South Korea's Constitutional Court has announced that it will conduct its inaugural pretrial hearing regarding the impeachment of Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on January 13, according to judicial officials on Monday.
The court has notified the legal teams representing both the National Assembly and the Prime Minister of the preparatory session, which will take place at 4 p.m. next Monday, the officials reported.
The Opposition-dominated National Assembly voted to impeach Han on December 27, shortly after he assumed the role of acting president following the impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol due to his brief declaration of martial law.
This hearing will address the selection of witnesses and evidence among other preparatory matters, although Han is not obliged to be present. Such hearings typically occur two to three times before oral arguments commence.
The main Opposition party, the Democratic Party, has cited Han's alleged participation in Yoon's martial law declaration and his failure to appoint new justices to the Constitutional Court as reasons for his impeachment.
Conversely, the ruling People Power Party has declared Han's impeachment to be invalid and has requested an injunction for its suspension from the Constitutional Court, as reported by Yonhap news agency.
Earlier, South Korea's anti-corruption agency requested police assistance to execute a warrant for detaining the impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol in connection with his unsuccessful martial law attempt, both parties confirmed.
The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) made this request in an official letter sent late Sunday, just one day before the warrant's expiration.
"The CIO sent us an official letter requesting our cooperation without prior consultation," a police official informed Yonhap News Agency. "We are currently conducting an internal legal review."
The CIO had suspended its execution of the warrant last Friday after a prolonged standoff with security personnel at the presidential residence.
The agency had been collaborating with the police and the investigation unit of the Defence ministry to jointly investigate Yoon's brief imposition of martial law on December 3.
With the warrant set to expire at midnight, the CIO was expected to either attempt to detain Yoon again or request an extension, among other options.
Sources indicate that the CIO's letter has led to grievances within the police, alleging that the agency is attempting to shift its responsibilities after its passive execution of the warrant last Friday.
Yoon's legal representatives have dismissed the warrant as unlawful and invalid, arguing that the CIO lacks the authority to investigate the insurrection charges he faces over his martial law declaration.
