South Korea's political parties expressed mixed feelings toward a possible arrest of former President Park Geun-hye on Monday, with the former opposition bloc calling it an inevitable outcome and the former ruling party a regrettable decision.
The public prosecutors said they have already filed a request with the local district court for the arrest of the former president on suspicions of bribery and a dozen other allegations.
Former President Park Geun-hye emerges from the public prosecutors' office in Seoul on March 22, 2017, following an overnight questioning over various corruption allegations that led to her dismissal from office. (Yonhap file photo)
The liberal Democratic Party, previously the main opposition party, welcomed the prosecution's move, calling it a historic decision.
"It is a historic decision, and one based on law and principle," party spokesman Rep. Youn Kwan-suk told a press briefing.
"It doesn't make sense in the first place that the person who accepted bribes is not detained, while the one who offered the bribes has been," he added.
The former ruling Liberty Korea Party acknowledged the prosecution's need to seek an arrest of Park but still expressed regrets.
"We understand the prosecution made its decision based on the law and principle," party spokesman Rep. Kim Sung-won said in a released statement. "Still, it is very regrettable for the party that has been hoping for an investigation without detention."
The conservative Bareun Party also expressed regrets, but only over the fact that a former president may again stand trial on criminal charges.
"We hope former President Park will offer a sincere apology and show a sincere reflection of her wrongdoing before the people," party spokesman Rep. Oh Shin-hwan said in a released statement.
The Bareun Party consists of lawmakers who broke away from the former ruling party while calling for a parliamentary impeachment of Park.
Park, removed from office by a Constitutional Court decision on March 10, now faces 13 criminal charges, including bribery, coercion and abuse of power.
If arrested, she would be the third former South Korean president to be so in the country's history.
"We hope it will be a chance for us to remind ourselves of the spirit of democracy that all are equal before the law," the Bareun Party spokesman added.
The liberal People's Party urged the court to issue a warrant for Park's arrest, saying it will serve justice.
"The arrest of former President Park will simply mark a natural result of her own deeds, especially when all other accomplices in the corruption scandal have been arrested," it said. (Yonhap)