Impeached South Korean President Yun Seok-Yeol has rallied his supporters with a letter saying he will “fight to the end” as he faces an attempt by authorities to arrest him over his brief imposition of martial law, his lawyer said.
“I’m watching your hard work live on YouTube,” Yun wrote in a letter late Wednesday to hundreds of supporters who had gathered near the prime minister’s office to protest the investigation into him. .
“I will fight to the end to protect this country together with all of you,” Yoon said in the letter, a photo of which was sent to the media by Yoon’s lawyer Seok Dong-hyun.
The opposition Democratic Party, which controlled the parliamentary majority and led the December 14 impeachment of Mr. Yun, who declared martial law on December 3, said the letter proves that Mr. Yun is delusional and that Mr. stated that they remain determined to complete the “rebellion”.
“As if trying to riot was not enough, he is now inciting his supporters into violent confrontations,” party spokesperson Cho Seung-rae said in a statement.
A court approved an arrest warrant for Yun on Tuesday, potentially making him the first sitting president to be detained as part of an investigation into allegations that he masterminded a riot in an attempt to impose martial law.
The riot is one of the few criminal charges against which South Korea’s president is not immune.
The CIO, which is leading a joint investigation team including police officers and prosecutors, has until January 6 to execute the arrest warrant.
It is unclear when and how he will be arrested, or whether the Presidential Security Agency, which has blocked investigators from entering Yun’s office and official residence despite a search warrant, will try to prevent the arrest. .
Yoon Kap-geun, a lawyer for the impeached president, argued that the arrest warrant was illegal and invalid because the CIO does not have the authority to request a warrant under South Korean law.
The lawyer warned on Thursday that if police officers tried to detain Mr. Yun on behalf of the CIO, they could be arrested by “the presidential security services or the people,” adding that police powers were limited to crowd control and maintaining public order. He said it was limited to.
Separately, the second trial of Yoon’s impeachment trial will be held at the Constitutional Court on Friday. Yoon will be suspended from his presidential duties, and Minister of Finance Choi Sang-mok will serve as acting president until the outcome of the trial is known.
If the court approves the impeachment and removes Yoon from office, a presidential election will be held within 60 days.
The warrants for Yun’s arrest and search of his office and residence came after the conservative career prosecutor was repeatedly summoned by investigators to appear for questioning in a criminal investigation separate from his trial at the Constitutional Court. It was issued because there was no
The former defense minister, who officials said encouraged Yun to declare martial law, has been charged with insurrection and is scheduled to go on trial on January 16. Some senior military officials who lead the defense of the capital, Seoul, were also indicted on suspicion of involvement.
