Yoon Sang-hyun on Yoon's Detention: "While Lee Jae-myung Is Investigated Without Detention... Aimed at Public Ridicule"

Yoon Sang-hyun, a member of the People Power Party, strongly criticized the arrest of President Yoon Seok-yeol, saying, "The judiciary's hammer has destroyed even President Yoon Seok-yeol's soul."

On the 19th, Yoon Sang-hyun, a member of the People Power Party, strongly criticized the detention of President Yoon Seok-yeol, saying, "The judiciary's hammer has destroyed even President Yoon Seok-yeol's soul." Photo by Yonhap News

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On the morning of the 19th, Rep. Yoon wrote on Facebook, "If the unlawful issuance of the arrest warrant destroyed the body, this arrest decision has destroyed even the soul." He added, "President Yoon is not going anywhere, and most of the related parties have been arrested and detained, so what is the purpose of even arresting him?" He questioned, "If it is not to strip him naked and mock him in the marketplace, then what other purpose could there be?"

He continued, "Lee Jae-myung, who was involved in numerous crimes, whose associates related to those crimes have committed suicide, and who was even convicted in the first trial for violating the Public Official Election Act last November, is being investigated without detention. So why is President Yoon being arrested?" He protested, "Is this truly a fair judgment and consistent with the important principle of equity in judicial justice?"

He emphasized, "According to the Criminal Procedure Act of the Republic of Korea, the principle is to guarantee the suspect's right to defense and to prohibit excessive restriction of fundamental rights as stated in the Constitution, so non-custodial investigation is the rule." He also asked, "Then why is this non-custodial investigation applied to Representative Lee, the leader of the main opposition party, but not to President Yoon, the incumbent president?" He questioned, "Why does the judiciary's hammer become a sword that destroys President Yoon's body and soul, but a shield that barely sustains Representative Lee's political life?" He added, "The judiciary's bias and politicization are not new issues, but shouldn't there be limits?" He sharply criticized, "If you cannot be fair and impartial, then do not even be biased."

President Yoon was arrested in the early morning of the day, 47 days after the December 3 emergency martial law incident and four days after being detained by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials. With this arrest, President Yoon set an unfortunate record as the first sitting president in constitutional history to be subject to a travel ban, issuance and execution of an arrest warrant, detention in a detention center, and now arrest. According to the Constitution of the Republic of Korea, the president has immunity from criminal prosecution during the term of office, except for charges related to rebellion and foreign invasion.

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