South Korea’s parliament impeached President Park Geun-Hye in December on 13 separate counts stemming from a wide-ranging corruption and abuse of power scandal.
When the Constitutional Court considered whether to uphold or overturn her removal they were grouped into five points of contention.
Serious breach of any one is sufficient to confirm impeachment, but six votes — a two-thirds majority of the full bench — are needed, even though only eight justices are sitting.
These are the issues before the court:
According to parliament, Park’s friend and secret confidante of 40 years’ standing, Choi Soon-Sil, was granted unlawful access to state secrets, actively intervened in state affairs, fiddled with presidential speeches, recommended candidates for key official posts and meddled in government policies.
Park’s lawyers deny Choi intervened in state affairs, and say her roles were limited to partly rewording the president’s speeches to make them easier for ordinary people to understand.
Park allegedly forced several officials who did not co-operate with Choi — who is currently on trial for abuse of power, coercion and fraud — to resign or change posts.
She is also said to have obliged local firms to “donate” nearly $70 million to non-profit foundations Choi then allegedly used for personal gain.
But Park’s lawyers say government appointments were made legally, and the foundations were voluntarily established by companies to help the country’s cultural and sporting development.
According to the accusations, the Blue House threatened a tax probe and legal action against the Segye Ilbo newspaper after it reported on alleged interference in state affairs by Choi’s then husband, forcing the daily’s president to step down.
Park’s side says the presidency was only stressing the gravity of the crime of leaking its own documents, and had no intention of suppressing freedom of press.
Park was absent for seven hours on the day the Sewol ferry sank in April 2014, killing more than 300 people, mostly schoolchildren.
Even the head of her presidential secretariat did not know where she was when the disaster — the country’s worst for decades — struck, sparking wild rumours including a tryst and a cosmetic surgery.
Park’s lawyers say she was staying in her “residence cum office”, receiving situation reports by phone and issuing directives on rescue operations. They also say she cannot be held legally responsible for the sinking.
– Acceptance of bribes and breaches of criminal codes –
Parliament’s representatives say the business “donations” to Choi’s two controversial foundations should be seen as bribes as Park offered policy favours in return.
Firms involved include Samsung Group, whose heir Lee Jae-Yong has denied any wrongdoing.
Park’s side says the payments should not be seen as bribes as Park pushed the establishment of the foundations in the public interest.
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