South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol’s legal team are set to attend court on Friday as the constitutional court begins hearings into his impeachment by parliament over his short-lived imposition of martial law,
The court has 180 days to decide whether to reinstate Yoon or remove him. In the latter scenario, a new presidential election would be held within 60 days.
Two lawyers in Yoon’s legal team are set to attend the court hearing, one a former prosecutor and the other a former spokesperson for the constitutional court, according to a message to reporters from Seok Dong-hyeon, a lawyer advising Yoon. The two could not be immediately reached for comment.
Yoon is not required to attend the hearing.
The unexpected martial law decree and swift political fallout shocked the nation and financial markets, unsettling key allies the United States and Europe which had seen Yoon as a staunch partner in global efforts to counter China, Russia and North Korea.
The crisis intensified this week as the opposition Democratic Party vowed to impeach acting president Han Duck-soo after he rejected a call to immediately appoint three justices to the constitutional court to fill vacancies.
Parliament is scheduled to meet on Friday afternoon. The Democratic party has said it would bring to a vote a motion to impeach Han.
The party has clashed with the Yoon-appointed prime minister over the justices, as well as bills calling for special prosecutors to investigate the president.
On Thursday, Han said it was beyond his remit as a caretaker president to appoint the justices without bipartisan agreement.
In a separate criminal case, Yoon had until Thursday defied requests by the court to submit documents as well as summons by investigators over his martial law declaration on 3 December, drawing criticism even from some members of his party.