First Day of the Temporary National Assembly... Proposal for Judge Impeachment Introduced

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Ju-yeon] On the first day of the February extraordinary session of the National Assembly, an impeachment motion against Im Seong-geun, Chief Judge of the Busan High Court, will be proposed. The number of co-sponsors alone is said to be close to the quorum required for approval, so it is expected that the motion will pass at the plenary session on the 4th without difficulty. However, since the vote will be conducted by secret ballot, some voices say that the conclusion should be observed until the end.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 1st, Lee Su-jin, a former judge and member of the Democratic Party of Korea, said in a phone interview with Asia Economy, "It is meaningful to check the judiciary, which has not been checked so far," adding, "We will properly fulfill the role of lawmakers regarding judges' misconduct to enhance their self-purification ability."

Lee Tan-hee, the main proposer from the Democratic Party, is scheduled to hold a press conference at the National Assembly Communication Office before the proposal in the afternoon, titled ‘Impeachment Motion Against Im Seong-geun, a Judge Involved in Anti-Constitutional Acts, by Lawmakers from Four Parties,’ where he will mention the necessity of impeachment.

The impeachment motion is expected to be proposed at 4 p.m. that day, after which, according to Article 130 of the National Assembly Act, it will be reported to the plenary session at 2 p.m. on the 2nd and go through the approval process at 2 p.m. on the 4th.

Co-sponsors of the impeachment motion include not only the Democratic Party but also lawmakers from the Justice Party, Open Democratic Party, and Basic Income Party, among other ruling coalition members. It is reported that the number of co-sponsors alone has exceeded the quorum for approval (majority of the total members). However, it is still too early to discuss whether it will pass.

Lee said, "Since the vote is by secret ballot, even if someone is listed as a co-sponsor, they may not vote in favor in the final vote," adding, "In such a case, the motion could be rejected."

Chief Judge Im is suspected of intervening in rulings, including the allegation that he instructed a judge to make an interim judgment that articles about former President Park Geun-hye’s ‘7-hour whereabouts during the Sewol ferry disaster’ were false.

On the same day, Hong Young-pyo, a Democratic Party lawmaker, criticized on MBC Radio’s ‘Kim Jong-bae’s Focus’ program, saying, "Regarding President Park Geun-hye’s 7-hour whereabouts, a Japanese newspaper reported on it, and Im, who is not the presiding judge but is in charge of court administrative affairs, effectively instructed the presiding judge to make a wrong ruling," adding, "This itself is clearly an act violating the Constitution and laws."

If this judicial impeachment motion is approved by the National Assembly, it will be the first in constitutional history. Lawyer Koo Ja-ryong explained on YTN Radio’s ‘Hwang Bo-seon’s Starting Morning,’ "Around 1985, an impeachment motion against Chief Justice Yoo Tae-heung was proposed but rejected, and the Democratic Party proposed an impeachment motion against Justice Shin Young-chul for intervening in the mad cow disease candlelight protest trial, but the motion was automatically discarded because the National Assembly did not vote within 72 hours of the proposal," adding, "Both previous cases involved Supreme Court justices, so this is the first time an impeachment motion has been proposed against a lower court judge, and if it passes, it will be the first case in constitutional history."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.