Seongjae Park's Legal Defense for Impeachment Ends in One Go, When Will Yoon's Impeachment Happen?

Ruling for President Yoon Expected on the 21st,
But Some Predict a Decision May Be Delayed Beyond This Week

The impeachment trial arguments for Park Seong-jae, Minister of Justice, whose impeachment bill passed the National Assembly on charges including involvement in the December 3 emergency martial law, concluded on the 18th. This is 96 days after the impeachment motion was approved by the National Assembly on December 12 last year. With the Constitutional Court wrapping up the impeachment trial schedules for major public officials for whom dates had been previously set, attention is now focused on the timing of the impeachment ruling for President Yoon Seok-yeol.

Park Sung-jae, Minister of Justice, is attending the first impeachment trial hearing held on the 18th at the Constitutional Court in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

On the 18th at 2 p.m., the Constitutional Court held the first hearing for Minister Park’s impeachment trial in the Grand Bench courtroom in Jongno-gu, Seoul. The date for the ruling will be set later. On this day, the National Assembly and Minister Park’s side clashed over the grounds for impeachment, including ▲ aiding the declaration of emergency martial law and participating in acts of rebellion ▲ violating the National Assembly’s testimony and inspection law by refusing to submit documents ▲ violating political neutrality of public officials by leaving the plenary session prematurely.

Minister Park’s side argued, "This impeachment motion should be dismissed as inadmissible due to the National Assembly’s hasty resolution process, unspecified and unclear grounds for impeachment, and the irrationality of the grounds themselves." In his final statement, Minister Park said, "Without any separate investigation or evidence collection procedures, the absurd argument that ‘silence on emergency martial law equals conspiracy’ was used as grounds for impeachment," and requested, "Please promptly dismiss this abuse of impeachment rights that exploits the principle of majority rule."

On the other hand, the National Assembly side countered, "Minister Park’s involvement in President Yoon’s acts of rebellion, his refusal to submit requested documents without justifiable reasons, and his disregard for the National Assembly by leaving the plenary session clearly demonstrate a lack of will to uphold the Constitution and laws." Jeong Cheong-rae, Chairman of the National Assembly’s Judiciary Committee, stated, "If the respondent was directly or indirectly involved in rebellion, a stern dismissal must be carried out according to the Constitution."

With the conclusion of Minister Park’s impeachment trial arguments, only Police Commissioner Jo Ji-ho remains to undergo the trial procedure among public officials impeached related to the December 3 emergency martial law. The hearing date for Commissioner Jo has not yet been set. President Yoon Seok-yeol and Prime Minister Han Deok-su, whose trials have already concluded, are now only awaiting rulings.

Legal circles speculate that a ruling could be possible on the 21st, but there are also views that the deliberations among the justices may take longer than expected, making a ruling this week difficult. Some suggest that the Constitutional Court might issue rulings on Prime Minister Han or Minister Park first. On this day, Judiciary Committee Chairman Jeong Cheong-rae earnestly requested, "Including the dismissal of Minister Park Seong-jae, I sincerely ask that the ruling date for the president’s impeachment be set as soon as possible, even if it is just one day earlier."

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