Lee Jay Myung is in the hospital because of a hunger strike. At the same time, he is confronted with allegations of corruption. In his absence, Parliament approved a potentially momentous motion.
South Korea’s parliament has cleared the way for the arrest of opposition leader and former presidential candidate Lee Jae Myung. The National Assembly in Seoul also voted with a majority from the opposition to lift the 58-year-old lawmaker’s immunity, which would have protected him from criminal proceedings during the current legislative session.
The public prosecutor’s office had requested an arrest warrant for the center-left politician on charges of corruption and other crimes. During his time as governor of Gyeonggi Province between 2018 and 2021, he is said to have been involved in illegal money transfers from a South Korean company to the authoritarian neighboring country of North Korea.
Voting result not entirely surprising
Lee himself stayed away from the vote because he was in the hospital due to the health effects of a hunger strike. With his action, the head of the Democratic Party (Minjoo) has been protesting since the end of August against the policies of the right-wing conservative government of President Yoon Suk Yeol, which he accuses, among other things, of mismanagement and a flawed foreign policy. He was narrowly defeated by Yoon in the presidential election in March last year. It initially remained unclear when Lee would be brought before a judge.
Despite his party having a majority in parliament, the vote result was not entirely surprising. According to reports in South Korean newspapers, Minjoo was divided over the proposal to remove Lee’s immunity. Of the 295 MPs present, 149 voted in favor and 136 were against. The public prosecutor’s office accuses Lee, among other things, of being involved in a corruption scandal surrounding a housing project in Seongnam. Lee was mayor of the city south of Seoul until March 2018. Lee has denied the allegations and accused the government camp of political conspiracy.
Accusation of political incompetence
MPs also approved a motion from the opposition to remove Prime Minister Han Duck Soo by a vote of 175 to 116. Lee’s party accuses Han of political incompetence. However, the head of state is expected to stick to Han. South Korea has a presidential system in which the head of state makes almost all important decisions. Observers in South Korea also saw the proposal as the result of political disputes between the Minjoo and the government camp. It was the first time that such a motion against a prime minister found a majority in the National Assembly.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
