The opposition-led National Assembly on Thursday passes a special counsel investigation bill into insurrection charges against President Yoon Suk Yeol regarding his botched martial law decree on Dec. 3 on Thursday. Yonhap
The opposition-led National Assembly on Thursday passed two bills calling for separate special counsel investigations into insurrection charges against President Yoon Suk Yeol and multiple scandals involving first lady Kim Keon Hee.
The bill calling for the appointment of a special prosecutor to look into insurrection charges against Yoon for his botched martial law decree on Dec. 3 passed in a 195-86 vote, with two abstentions, during a parliamentary plenary meeting. Though the ruling People Power Party's official stance was to vote against the bill, five of its lawmakers, including Reps. Kim Yea-ji and Ahn Cheol-soo, voted in favor.
A clause in the bill prevents the presidential office's secretariat, the National Intelligence Service and the Presidential Security Service from interfering in the special counsel probe. The prosecution, police and Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials are obligated to cooperate with the special counsel if such a request is made.
It also states that a recommendation committee formed of the minister of the National Court Administration, the chair of the Korea Bar Association and the head of the Korea Law Professors Association should nominate three candidates for the special prosecutor. The president has to appoint one of the three nominees for the special prosecutor role.
The bill, which was introduced by the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea on Monday and passed Thursday, distinguishes itself from a similar special counsel probe proposal passed Tuesday. The latest is initiated by the Assembly passing a specific bill for the purpose, while the former activates an existing law upon passage. Yoon can veto the one passed Thursday, but cannot exercise his veto power over the prior bill.
In a 195-85 vote, the Assembly passed the fourth version of a bill mandating a special counsel probe into several allegations against the first lady, including her alleged involvement in a stock manipulation case that unfolded over a decade ago. There were two abstentions. Four ruling party lawmakers voted in favor of the bill.
The fourth version of the bill focuses on allegations that the first lady interfered in the ruling party's 2022 by-election candidate nominations with the help of a pollster named Myung Tae-kyun, who claimed to be an adviser to Yoon. The bill has been continuously updated since the first version passed the Assembly in December 2023, before later being vetoed by Yoon in January this year. The stock manipulation allegations and scandal involving the first lady's acceptance of a luxury Christian Dior bag from a Korean American pastor have remained targets of investigation since the first version of the bill.
The third version was vetoed by Yoon last month. The Assembly failed to override that veto on Dec. 7.
Early in the plenary session, the opposition-led Assembly approved impeachment motions against Justice Minister Park Sung-jae and National Police Commissioner General Cho Ji-ho, accusing them of insurrection or colluding in the act of insurrection tied to Yoon's martial law decree. The passage of the motion suspends them from their duties.
Senior Democratic Party spokesperson Cho Seung-rae said Thursday that the impeachment vote against Yoon will be held 5 p.m. on Saturday, as planned. The main opposition plans to introduce the second impeachment motion by the end of the day, as an impeachment motion must be put to a vote between 24 and 72 hours after it is reported to a plenary session by law.
Seven ruling party lawmakers, most of them considered as members of "pro-Han Dong-hoon" faction within the party, had officially announced their intention to vote in favor of the impeachment motion as of Thursday.
The motion requires 200 votes in the 300-member Assembly to pass. The opposition coalition holds a majority of 192 seats, which requires at least eight defections from the ruling party.
The first impeachment motion against Yoon was scrapped on Dec. 7, after failing to meet the 200-vote quorum. The Democratic Party has said it plans to float and table the motion "every Saturday" until it passes.
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