Moving to the Constitutional Court.
The eight justices held their first meeting ahead of the launch of the impeachment trial of President Yoon Suk Yeol next Tuesday that is January 14th.
Oh Soo-young reports.
The Constitutional Court has reaffirmed its plans to swiftly conduct the impeachment trial hearings for President Yoon Suk Yeol, despite procedural issues raised by his team.
In a briefing Monday, Press Officer Cheon Jae-hyun said the Court’s judicial bench held their first meeting earlier in the day as an eight-member panel, and shared views on preparatory procedures for the President’s trial.
“The eight justices unanimously reaffirmed the decision to hold the impeachment trial hearings every Tuesday and Thursday and to conduct deliberation sessions once a week. The commitment to conducting a swift and fair trial remains unchanged.”
“The timeline puts significant time pressure on the President.
If Yoon skips the first trial session, the court would have to reschedule.
But a second absence means the panel can proceed without him.”
Yoon’s legal team has been accused of employing delaying tactics as the President refused to accept delivery of court documents and did not submit sufficient materials during the first two preparatory hearings
Following the Court’s scheduling of five trial hearing dates, beginning next Tuesday,. without a third preparatory session, Yoon’s team has complained that the unilateral announcement violates legal procedures, as Criminal Procedure Rules, which apply to impeachment cases, state that defense counsels must be consulted upon arranging multiple trial dates at once.
To this, the Court’s press officer said the five hearings were designated by the bench to “facilitate the parties’ trial preparation plans and ensure a smooth procedural process,” citing the Constitutional Court Act and Constitutional Court Rules, instead of the criminal procedural law.
Yoon’s team has also contested the main grounds for impeachment.
The National Assembly last week stated it would no longer argue whether the martial law declaration constitutes insurrection under criminal law.
Eliminating the process of calling in related witnesses would streamline the trial proceedings and therefore speed up the ruling.
The President’s lawyers say this defeats the purpose of holding the trial, as the National Assembly’s impeachment resolution cites insurrection as a reason for removing Yoon from office.
The Court says modifying the impeachment charges isn’t covered by explicit provisions and that the matter is for the bench to decide.
It also denied it recommended to the National Assembly to retract insurrection charges from its list of impeachment grounds.
Amid political clashes over Acting President Choi Sang-mok’s move to fill two out of three Court vacancies, leaving the remaining justice for bipartisan agreement, the opposition party has filed to dispute his decision.
While an eight-member panel is enough to deliberate on and vote for impeachment the same number as when former President Park Geun-hye was impeached in 2017 the opposition has been piling on the pressure to fill the last spot, to increase the likelihood of an impeachment verdict.
The Court said the trial hearing on the matter would take place on January 22nd.
Oh Sooyoung, Arirang News.
Source : Arirang TV, https://www.arirang.com/news/view?id=279634
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