S. Korea’s parliament sets up presidential impeachment vote

South Korea’s parliament, the National Assembly, introduced the impeachment motion on Thursday, setting up a likely vote on Friday, according to news agency Yonhap.

Parliament is expected to vote on impeaching Park tomorrow and opposition parties have said they believe they will get the two-thirds majority needed to pass the bill.

The impeachment motion was moved in a plenary session, meaning that it had to occur between 24 to 72 hours.

If the impeachment vote passes, the country’s Constitutional Court will have up to 180 days to determine whether to formally end Park’s presidency.

Ms Choi has already been indicted by state prosecutors, who accuse Ms Park of colluding with her friend of 40 years.

Park held meeting with her cabinet members at the presidential Blue House this afternoon, her final act as president before stepping aside for the deliberation.

The fact that Friday’s manual paper ballot is anonymous has fuelled speculation that some lawmakers who pledged a “yes” vote in line with public opinion, may in fact vote against.

In a phone call with defense minister Han Min-koo, Hwang said that under the current situation there is a possibility that North Korea could use the political upheaval to stir up trouble south of the 38th parallel, and that the South Korean military should maintain its readiness posture.

The prime minister at the time, Goh Kun, said in a 2013 memoir that he had made a decision to stay “low key” while he held the reins of power.

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.

A poll by the Real Meter group has found that 78.2 per cent of South Koreans approved of the impeachment motion, up 2.9 percentage points from a week earlier. She had earlier said she was willing to resign in April to pave the way for an election in June, an offer rejected by not only opposition but also a faction within the ruling Saenuri party.

The impeachment motion had accused Park of constitutional and criminal violations ranging from a failure to protect people’s lives to bribery and abuse of power.

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

One of the Iowa City rally’s organizers, Kim Yooneui from Seoul, said that people who support this cause can protest, share their support on social media and sign petitions in favor of an impeachment vote in the Korean National Assembly.

September 20: Newspaper Hankyoreh reports that Choi Soon-sil, Park’s friend and the daughter of Park’s late longtime mentor, was involved in establishing and running K-Sports.

The dictator president Park Chung-hee put the Chaebols or conglomerates, like Samsung and Hyundai at the centre of the economy to drive the growth.

In 2004, parliament impeached then-president Roh Moo-hyun, suspending his powers for 63 days while the court reviewed the decision, which it overturned. The president said last month she would let parliament decide her fate and is prepared to step down.