(Bloomberg) — South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol looks determined to battle on rather than step down early even as probes deepen into his martial law declaration and more members of his party say they will back impeachment.
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Yoon will likely fight any bid to impeach him and appears to have rejected the idea of quitting early in February or March, according to Kim Jong-hyuk, a senior ruling party member, speaking in an SBS radio show on Wednesday.
The political crisis Yoon has triggered in South Korea continues to deepen with the arrest of former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun and his attempted suicide, a police raid on the presidential office and with the opposition Democratic Party preparing to file another impeachment motion in parliament that has an improved chance of passing.
Kim has no health issues following his attempt to take his life, according to Yonhap News.
The president is fighting to stay in his role after his brief declaration of martial law last week stunned the nation and its allies. The shock move has sparked political chaos, initially spooked financial markets and fueled public outrage.
Markets have shown more resilience in the last couple of days with the Kospi equity benchmark finishing the day with a 1% gain. The Korean won edged down 0.2% against the US dollar as it was buffeted by moves in China’s currency.
With the second bid to impeach Yoon likely to come Saturday, according to Yonhap News, the opposition is edging closer to securing the 200 votes needed to pass the motion in parliament.
People Power Party lawmaker Kim Jae-sub said he would back an impeachment motion this time round, bringing the number of ruling party politicians who have publicly said they are prepared to vote in favor of impeachment to five. The opposition needs at least eight ruling party votes to pass the motion.
A successful motion would result in a Constitutional Court case lasting up to 180 days. If the court rules against Yoon, he would be forced out of office and a presidential election called within two months.
Yoon takes the view that even if he is impeached, the Constitutional Court only needs one of its six members to vote against impeachment for it to be dismissed, according to Kim Jong-hyuk.
The president faces other challenges, too. A police investigation team looking into the martial law declaration arrived at the presidential office in Yongsan around 11:45 a.m. Wednesday, Yonhap News reported, citing the team. Yoon wasn’t present at the office, though the warrant identified him as a suspect, Yonhap added.
There were still few confirmed details of former Defense Minister Kim’s attempt on his life. Kim is seen as a key conspirator behind the martial law order that rattled the Asian nation.
His warrant for allegedly playing a key role in insurrection and abusing power marks the first approval of formal arrests in a series of investigations under way against President Yoon and his subordinates a week following the shock martial law decree and its subsequent retraction. Yoon has already been banned from traveling overseas.
The police said earlier that it could seek an emergency arrest of Yoon, if conditions are met, following a review. Yoon has been on the lookout for a legal team, contacting a former colleague of his who previously worked at the prosecution, Yonhap News reported, citing legal and political sources.
The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials, an independent agency under the national government, is seeking to wrest control of the case from police and prosecutors. The group has raised concerns about potential bias within law enforcement, as police may have been involved in enforcing the martial law decree, and Yoon’s past experience as a prosecutor might affect how his case is handled.
–With assistance from Shinhye Kang, Seyoon Kim, Youkyung Lee, Jaehyun Eom and Sarina Yoo.
(Adds details on defense minister suicide attempt and raid on presidential office.)
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