South Korea's Parliament approved a motion Friday to impeach President Park Geun-hye, suspending her from office pending a Constitutional Court decision. Motoko Rich, The Times's Tokyo bureau chief, reporting from Seoul, describes the scandal that led to the vote. </s> SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean lawmakers vote to impeach President Park Geun-hye, a stunning fall for country’s first female president. </s> SEOUL, Korea, Republic Of — South Korea is entering potentially one of the most momentous weeks in its recent political history, with impeachment looming for President Park Geun-hye as ruling party dissenters align with the opposition in a strengthening effort to force her out.

Anti-Park lawmakers in the ruling Saenuri Party said Monday that about 35-40 of them will vote Friday to impeach Park, who is embroiled in an explosive political scandal. Those votes, when combined with 172 from opposition and anti-Park independent lawmakers, should be enough to impeach her.

If impeached, Park's presidential powers will be suspended until the country's Court determines whether to formally unseat her. The court has up to 180 days to decide.

The decision by the anti-Park ruling party lawmakers came after hundreds of thousands of people turned up for a rally in Seoul on Saturday calling for Park's ouster, the sixth straight weekend of demonstrations. Park made a conditional resignation offer last week, saying she would stand down if parliament works out a stable power transfer, but the opposition described it as a stalling tactic.

The scandal on allegations that Park let her longtime friend Choi Soon-sil manipulate government affairs from the shadows and extort money from businesses. Park has denied most of the allegations, though she acknowledged that she got help from Choi, who has never held a government job, in editing her speeches and with unspecified "public relations" issues.

Prosecutors have indicted Choi and two of Park's ex-aides. Park, who has immunity from prosecution while in office, has refused to meet with prosecutors.

Lawmakers are holding hearings to separately look into the scandal. Heads of businesses allegedly involved in the scandal, including Samsung and Hyundai conglomerates, were scheduled to attend a hearing Tuesday. Choi has refused to testify at her session Wednesday, according to officials at the National Assembly, South Korea's legislature.

A coalition of opposition and independent lawmakers submitted a motion on Park's impeachment over the weekend, accusing her of violating the constitution and undermining democracy. A National Assembly official is to report the motion to a plenary session on Thursday, a formal procedure that can force an impeachment vote within 72 hours.

The opposition wants an impeachment vote on Friday, the final day of the current parliamentary regular session. </s> SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea is entering potentially one of the most momentous weeks in its recent political history, with impeachment looming for President Park Geun-hye as ruling party dissenters align with the opposition in a strengthening effort to force her out.

Anti-Park lawmakers in the ruling Saenuri Party said Monday that about 35-40 of them will vote for Park’s impeachment Friday. Those votes, when combined with 172 from opposition and anti-Park independent lawmakers, should be enough to impeach her.

The decision by the anti-Park ruling party lawmakers came after hundreds of thousands of people turned up for a rally Saturday calling for Park’s ouster, the sixth straight weekend of demonstrations.

The opposition submitted an impeachment motion over the weekend, accusing Park of letting a longtime confidante manipulate government affairs. </s> A South Korean parliamentary committee on Wednesday ordered the jailed woman at the center of a scandal that threatens to bring down the president to attend a hearing investigating her alleged manipulation of government affairs.

The move at the beginning of the hearing was the latest step in what appears to be the final days in power for President Park Geun-hye. She faces an impeachment vote Friday.

Lawmakers sent about 20 security officers with an order demanding that Choi Soon-sil, who is accused of colluding with Park to control government affairs and extort companies, plus 10 other witnesses attend the hearing.

Choi and the others could face jail or fines if they refuse. In past cases, witnesses who refused to attend hearings often were fined.

Choi, now jailed at a detention center near Seoul, had cited a panic disorder as the reason why she couldn’t testify on Wednesday, according one of the lawmakers at the hearing.

Choi and two of Park’s ex-presidential aides have been indicted. Fourteen people caught up in the scandal were at the hearing, including two of Choi’s former associates and ex-presidential chief of staff Kim Ki-choon.

If impeached, Park’s presidential powers will be suspended and the country’s Constitutional Court will have up to 180 days to rule whether to formally unseat her.

On Tuesday, Park told ruling party leaders that she is willing to accept the outcome if she is impeached and would make “every available effort” to prepare for a court process. The comments suggest Park is now bracing for a Constitutional Court procedure that would determine her fate, according to South Korean media reports. </s> SEOUL, South Korea — South Korean President Park Geun-hye’s impeachment Friday strips her of power — but not the perks.

Even as her prime minister governs in her stead, Park gets to keep living at the presidential Blue House, using her official car and plane, collecting the same monthly salary (about $15,000 reportedly) and receiving round-the-clock security.

She also holds onto the title “President.”

But with nothing officially to do, it’s uncertain how she’ll spend her days during the up-to-six months the country’s Constitutional Court has to decide whether to accept the impeachment and formally end her presidency.

In 2004, when President Roh Moo-hyun was impeached by lawmakers, he spent his time at the Blue House reading books and newspapers and mountain-climbing with journalists, according to South Korean media.

The bureaucratic machinery that suspended Park and transferred her powers to Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn began churning as soon as the impeachment motion passed Friday.

National Assembly Speaker Chung Se-kyun ordered the chairman of the assembly’s legislation and judiciary committee to convey the original version of the motion to the Constitutional Court. Upon receiving the motion, the court will begin its deliberations.

Chung also sent parliamentary officials to deliver copies of the impeachment motion and an official document on the motion’s passage to both the Blue House and the Constitutional Court. Technically, the president’s powers are transferred to the prime minister the moment one of the president’s aides receives the papers.

Hwang will handle the president’s duties until the Constitutional Court rules on Park’s fate. If the court removes her, he would continue to serve that role until a presidential election is held; that vote would have to take place within 60 days of Park’s removal. Through it all, his title will remain prime minister.

Park loses her powers as commander-in-chief of South Korea’s 630,000-member military, and her ability to appoint officials, sign treaties with foreign countries and carry out special pardons of inmates. Park also cannot preside over meetings of presidential secretaries.

With Park allowed to stay at the Blue House, Hwang is to govern the country from his Seoul office. </s> South Korean President Park Geun-hye's powers were suspended at 7:03 p.m. on Friday after parliament voted to impeach her, her office said.

Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn took over as acting president and told a cabinet meeting he would do his best to ensure stable government continued to function.

South Korea's parliament voted on Friday to impeach President Park Geun-hye over a corruption scandal, suspending her powers.

The country’s Constitutional Court will have up to 180 days to determine whether to formally end Park’s presidency. During that time Park would be suspended as president but not removed, with her duties, including commander in chief of South Korea’s 630,000—member military, temporarily transferred to the prime minister until the court reaches a decision on whether her impeachment is constitutional.

As more than 1,500 protesters massed in front of the National Assembly building, lawmakers inside, some of them taking selfies as they waited, lined up to enter curtained voting rooms, where they recorded their anonymous votes and then emerged and put their folded ballots in boxes.

Park’s confidante, Choi Soon—sil, and two former presidential aides allegedly linked to the scandal have been indicted. Park, who has immunity from prosecution while in office, has refused to meet with prosecutors investigating the scandal.

Park, South Korea’s first female president, would be the country’s second leader to face an impeachment vote. In 2004, lawmakers impeached then President Roh Moo—hyun on allegations of incompetence and election law violations. But the impeachment led to a big public backlash, and the Constitutional Court reinstated Roh two months later. Roh left office in early 2008 after serving out his single five—year term. In 2009, he killed himself amid a high—profile corruption investigation of his family.

Park has publicly apologized over the scandal three times and acknowledged that she received help from Choi in editing her speeches and with unspecified “public relations” matters. But she denies involvement in Choi’s alleged criminal activities.

About 160 lawmakers affiliated with the two main opposition parties said Thursday that they would resign en masse if parliament does not approve Park’s impeachment, but that might be just symbolic because the parliamentary speaker won’t likely approve the resignations out of worries about further political chaos.

Park’s father, Park Chung—hee, ruled the country for 18 years until his 1979 assassination. Choi is a daughter of Choi Tae—min, a purported cult leader who served as a mentor for Park Geun—hye until his death in 1994. Park, whose mother was assassinated in 1974, described Choi Soon—sil as someone “who helped me when I had difficulties” in the past.

Park’s ties with Choi Tae—min, who was mired in corruption scandals, have long dogged her political career. Many here criticize her for maintaining ties with the Choi family and for what’s seen as a lack of transparency on the key decisions she has made.

Park, whose term is to end in early 2018, tried to fend off impeachment by saying she would stand down if parliament arranges a stable power transfer. Her liberal opponents called the overture a stalling tactic to buy time and find ways to survive the scandal. </s> SEOUL, Korea, Republic Of — South Korean lawmakers on Friday impeached President Park Geun-hye, a stunning and swift fall for the country’s first female leader amid protests that drew millions into the streets in united fury.

After the vote, parliamentary officials hand-delivered formal documents to the presidential Blue House that stripped Park of her power and allowed the country’s No. 2 official, Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn, to assume leadership until the constitutional Court rules on whether Park must permanently step down. The court has up to six months to decide.

“I’d like to say that I’m deeply sorry to the people because the nation has to experience this turmoil because of my negligence and lack of virtue at a time when our security and economy both face difficulties,” Park said after the vote, before a closed-door meeting with her Cabinet where she and other aides reportedly broke down in tears.

Hwang separately said that he wanted “the ruling and opposition political parties and the parliament to gather strength and wisdom so that we can return stability to the country and people as soon as possible.”

Once called the “Queen of Elections” for her ability to pull off wins for her party, Park has been surrounded in the Blue House in recent weeks by millions of South Koreans who have taken to the streets in protest. They are furious over what prosecutors say was collusion by Park with a longtime friend to extort money from companies and to give that confidante extraordinary sway over government decisions.

Organizers said about 10,000 people gathered in front of the National Assembly to demand that lawmakers pass the impeachment motion. Some had spent the night on the streets after travelling from other cities. Scuffles broke out between angry anti-Park farmers, some of whom had driven tractors to the assembly from their farms, and police. When impeachment happened, many of those gathered raised their hands in the air and leapt about, cheering and laughing.

“Can you hear the roar of the people in front of the National Assembly?” Kim Kwan-young, an opposition lawmaker said ahead of the vote, referring to South Korea’s formal name. “Our great people have already opened the way. Let’s make it so we can stand honourably in front of history and our descendants.”

The handover of power prompted the prime minister to order South Korea’s defence minister to put the military on a state of heightened readiness to brace for any potential provocation by North Korea. No suspicious movements by the North were reported, however.

Park will be formally removed from office if at least six of the constitutional Court’s nine justices support her impeachment, and the country would then hold a presidential election within 60 days.

National Assembly speaker Chung Sye-kyun said the bill on Park’s impeachment was passed by a vote of 234 for and 56 opposed, with seven invalid votes and two abstentions. That well surpassed the necessary two-thirds vote needed in the 300-seat assembly, with the opposition getting strong support from members of Park’s party.

Present for the vote were relatives of the victims of a 2014 ferry disaster that killed more than 300 and was blamed in part on government incompetence and corruption; they cheered and clapped after the impeachment was announced. Most lawmakers left the hall quietly, though some could be seen taking selfies as they waited to vote.

Lawmakers from both parties faced huge pressure to act against Park, the daughter of a military dictator still revered by many conservatives for lifting the country from poverty in the 1960s and 1970s.

Her approval ratings had plunged to 4%, the lowest among South Korean leaders since democracy came in the late 1980s, and even elderly conservatives who once made up her political base have distanced themselves from her. An opinion survey released earlier Friday showed 81% of respondents supported Park’s impeachment.

South Korean lawmakers last voted to impeach a president in 2004, when they accused late liberal President Roh Moo-hyun of minor election law violations and incompetence. The constitutional Court restored Roh’s powers about two months later, ruling that his wrongdoings weren’t serious enough to justify his unseating.

The chances of the court reinstating Park are considered low because her charges are much graver. Some legal experts say the court might need more than a couple of months to decide. This is because Park’s case is much more complicated than Roh’s, and because her lawyers will likely press the court not to uphold the impeachment unless the suspicions against her are proven.

Hundreds gathered Friday night at a boulevard in front of an old palace gate in downtown Seoul, which has been the centre of demonstrations in recent weeks calling for Park’s removal. Protesters planned to march close to the Blue House.

The impeachment is a remarkable fall for Park, who convincingly beat her liberal opponent in 2012. Park’s single, five-year term was originally set to end Feb. 24, 2018.

The political turmoil around Park comes after years of frustration over a leadership style that inspired comparisons to her father, Park Chung-hee. Critics saw in Park an unwillingness to tolerate dissent as her government cracked down on press freedom, pushed to dissolve a leftist party and allowed aggressive police suppression of anti-government protests, which saw the death of an activist in 2016.

She also was heavily criticized over her government’s handling of the 2014 ferry sinking; most of those victims were school kids.

Park has repeatedly apologized over the public anger caused by the latest scandal, but has denied any legal wrongdoing. She attempted to avoid impeachment last month by making a conditional offer to step down if parliament could come up with a stable power-transfer plan, but the overture was dismissed by opposition lawmakers as a stalling ploy.

In indicting Park’s longtime friend, Choi Soon-sil, and two former presidential aides last month, state prosecutors said they believed the president was “collusively involved” in criminal activities by the suspects. Choi and the two former aides were accused of bullying large companies into providing tens of millions of dollars and favours to foundations and businesses Choi controlled, and enabling Choi to interfere with state affairs.

Park first met Choi in the 1970s, around the time Park was acting as first lady after her mother was killed during a 1974 assassination attempt on her father. Choi’s father, a shadowy figure named Choi Tae-min who was a Buddhist monk, a religious cult leader and a Christian pastor at different times, emerged as Park’s mentor.

The Choi clan has long been suspected of building a fortune by using their connections with Park to extort companies and government organizations. Choi’s ex-husband is also a former close aide of Park’s. </s> On Friday morning, South Korea’s constitutional court upheld former President Park Geun-hye’s impeachment in a unanimous 8-0 decision. With the court’s ruling, Park becomes the first South Korean president to be impeached from office. South Korea will hold presidential elections 60 days from now instead of in December 2017, as originally scheduled.

Park was impeached on December 9, 2016, after the National Assembly voted 234-56 to remove her from office. The Assembly’s vote came after weeks of protests in Seoul, drawing crowds of hundreds of thousands of people (and in excess of a million on certain days) against Park. The South Korean public was incensed after a scandal emerged around the improper involvement of Choi Soon-sil, a personal friend of Park’s, in affairs of state. Over the course of the scandal, it emerged that Choi had inappropriately intervened in government policy, influenced Park’s decision-making, and engaged in corrupt practices to enrich herself and her family.

Friday’s decision by the court represents a watershed moment in South Korean politics and concludes one turbulent political process, but begins another. South Korea’s political parties will now scramble as an election fast approaches in early May.

Moon Jae-in, the presidential contender from the center-left opposition Minjoo Party, has performed well in recent polls, suggesting that the country may be in for a partisan change in the presidency. A poll released earlier this week by Realmeter showed Moon with 36.4 percent support among likely candidates, keeping him at the top of likely presidential contenders for nine weeks straight.

Park’s conservative Saenuri Party split in December following the impeachment vote, with many conservative lawmakers looking to distance themselves from the disgraced president. Overall, South Korean prosecutors have indicted dozens of people in connection with the Choi Soon-sil scandal, including South Korean conglomerate Samsung’s billionaire vice chairman and leader-in-waiting Jay Y. Lee.
The South Korean National Assembly begins hearings ahead of an impeachment vote against President Park Geun-Hye.