The South Korean authorities arrested the dismissed president this Wednesday morning, according to members of the Corruption Investigation Office of Senior Officials (OICAF). It is the first time in South Korea’s democratic history that a sitting leader has been arrested. “I have decided to appear before OICAF, although this is an illegal investigation, to avoid any possibility of bloodshed,” Yoon said in a videotaped statement. “This does not mean that I approve the investigation,” he asserts. This morning was the second attempt to execute the arrest warrant against the president for imposing martial law for a few hours in December that has plunged the Asian country into one of its worst institutional crises in decades.
The arrest warrant was executed at 10:33 a.m. (2:33 a.m. Spanish peninsular time) at the presidential residence. Live images broadcast on local television showed a convoy of vehicles, presumably with Yoon on board, leaving the complex, located in central Seoul, and heading to the OICAF offices, which are located south of the capital. Yonhap anticipates that Yoon is already at the OICAF headquarters, where he will be questioned about his short-lived imposition of the This office now has 48 hours to detain him and question him. During this period, you can request an extension of the arrest if it is necessary to continue with the investigations.
One of the president’s lawyers, Seok Dong-hyun, stated in a Facebook post that the president had agreed to leave his residence and meet with investigators to “avoid a serious incident.” For his part, the parliamentary leader of the opposition, Park Chan-dae, expressed during a meeting of the Democratic Party that the arrest “is the first step towards the restoration of constitutional order, democracy and the rule of law.”
Police and OICAF officials managed to access the presidential compound using ladders to enter the complex, after being blocked by the Presidential Security Service (SSP), which erected a barricade with vehicles near the entrance. Four hours later, conversations began with the president’s entourage to coordinate his arrest.
“Unlike what happened during the first attempt, there were no SSP personnel or troops who actively resisted the execution,” an OICAF official told the Yonhap agency. “There were virtually no physical confrontations today,” he declared. On January 3, formed by soldiers and officials, they were prevented from entering the official premises: nearly 200 guards formed a human wall that blocked the entrance, confirming the clash between agencies and powers of the State.
This morning, they also met at the entrance to the presidential complex with a group of lawmakers from the ruling People Power Party and Yoon’s lawyers. Some researchers attempted to access the facility via a nearby hiking trail.
As local media reported that Yoon’s arrest could occur soon, some minor altercations took place in the vicinity of the residence between tearful protesters who are there to show their support for the leader and the police, according to Reuters. . In the images released by the media this Wednesday, hundreds of security officers can be seen, some carrying ladders and bolt cutters, entering the road that gives access to the villa where the president resides, and where he has remained guarded by a small group of security personnel at your service.
Yoon, provisionally dismissed after a parliamentary vote on December 14, is accused of insurrection for trying to impose martial law on December 3. The conservative leader has at all times rejected the charges that have been brought against him and has defended his actions as an “act of government.” He had been locked up for weeks in the official quarters surrounded by a crowd of supporters who braved the freezing temperatures of the Asian country: currently, about 6,500 supporters of the ousted president. Police have deployed about 3,000 troops to secure access to the compound, and physical clashes have occurred between investigators and Yoon’s supporters.
The suspended president’s legal team considers the order issued against him illegal, believing that the OICAF is not a competent body to investigate the charges of which he is accused. The aforementioned office, on the contrary, maintains that Yoon did not respond to its repeated requests to appear for questioning and that it has sufficient reasons to issue the order.
“This is not a fair application of the law,” said Yun Gap-geun, one of the lawyers, who described the attempted arrest as “illegal.” Police are also trying to arrest the deputy head of the presidential security team, Kim Seong-hoon, acting head of the service, for allegedly obstructing investigators from detaining Yoon. Police have circulated messages warning that any attempt to resist the execution of the orders could lead to arrest.
The orders against Yoon have been issued by the Seoul Western District Court after the dismissed president ignored three summons to appear for questioning over his failed attempt to impose the extreme measure. The orders, which were extended last week after expiring, are valid until January 21.
In the midst of all this situation, the Constitutional Court began the trial on Tuesday in which it must assess whether to reject or definitively validate Yoon’s dismissal as head of state. However, South Korea’s highest court adjourned the session within minutes after the president failed to appear. The next session is scheduled for Thursday and if Yoon does not attend, the proceedings will continue with his legal team representing him.
