South Korea court to rule Friday to remove or reinstate Park
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SEOUL, Korea, Republic Of — South Korea’s constitutional Court will rule Friday on whether impeached President Park Geun-hye should permanently leave office over a corruption scandal or be reinstated, a decision that could radically reshape the country’s political landscape.
If the court formally unseats Park, a presidential election must be held within 60 days. For Park to be removed, at least six of the court’s eight remaining justices need to support the impeachment motion filed by lawmakers, which accuses the president of a wide range of charges including extortion, bribery, abuse of power and leaking government secrets. One judge’s term ended in January.
The opposition-controlled parliament voted to impeach Park in December, following weeks of massive protests over suspicions that she conspired with a longtime confidante to extort money and favours from companies and allowed the friend to secretly manipulate state affairs.
Fierce rallies by opponents and supporters of Park have divided the streets of the capital, and the court’s ruling is likely to further polarize the electorate, already sharply split along generational and ideological lines.
