By Lee Kyung-min
Expectations are growing that the Constitutional Court will uphold the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye, after a district court issued an arrest warrant for Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee jae-yong, Friday, a month after the first such request was denied.
As bribery is one of five impeachment charges against President Park, the Constitutional Court may take into account the court ruling as a valid reference point that recognized Lee’s suspected involvement in the bribery allegation involving Park and her confidant Choi Soon-sil.
Park faces charges of abuse of authority and bribery. She also allegedly violated two Constitutional principles by allowing Choi, a “nobody,” to meddle deeply in state affairs, thereby betraying the public trust in the head of state.
Immediately after the district court rejected the team’s request for Lee’s first arrest warrant, Jan. 19, Park’s defense attorneys used the ruling as a major defense against her impeachment at the Constitutional Court hearings.
They largely dismissed the National Assembly prosecutorial panel’s charge that Park is the key suspect in the bribery allegation as groundless, claiming that the district court would have otherwise issued the warrant for Lee.
The panel has reiterated the allegation that Park asked business leaders to give 77.4 billion won ($66.4 million) to two foundations ― K Sports and Mir ― set up by Choi, in return for business favors.
However, the defense can no longer make the claim that the Constitutional Court should dismiss the impeachment due to a lack of evidence to charge Lee with bribery.
Such a view was echoed by Park Young-sun of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea.
During a radio interview with a local media outlet, Friday, she said that the district court issued the warrant after determining allegations of corrupt ties between Cheong Wa Dae and Samsung Group were substantial.
She added that the issuance of the warrant marks a significant judicial stand as all are equal in the eyes of the law and the corrupt ties between politics and business should be eradicated for good.
Former Constitutional Court Justice Lee Dong-heup, who recently joined Park’s defense team, had earlier argued for the dismissal of the impeachment on the premise that the President could not be subject to bribery charges.
Lee said Tuesday that Park should not face the charge of bribery in the impeachment unless the allegations involving Samsung Group were proven to be true, adding that former presidential secretary An Chong-bum and Choi were all indicted on charges of abuse of power and extortion, not bribery.
Given this, the remaining two hearings scheduled for Feb. 20 and 22, respectively, will be crucial for both the panel and the defense team, as the Constitutional Court set Feb. 24 as the date for closing arguments in the trial.
Acting court President Lee Jung-mi said Thursday that the judges would hear these arguments a day after both sides submit written arguments, Feb. 23.
The court decision is expected around March 10, given that a previous impeachment hearing took 14 days to deliberate. The schedule for an early presidential election and other necessary political events will follow afterward if the impeachment is upheld.