25.03.24.Today News : Impeachment of Han Deok-soo dismissed / Large sinkhole in Seoul

1. Impeachment of Han Deok-soo dismissed

The Constitutional Court dismissed the impeachment case against acting Prime Minister Han Deok-soo on 24 December. Han, who was impeached by the National Assembly on 27 December last year, returned to his post as acting president after 87 days.

The Constitutional Court held a pretrial date for Han's impeachment case and decided to dismiss the case by a vote of 5 (dismissed) to 3 (cited 1, dismissed 2). The grounds for Han's impeachment were that, as prime minister, he recommended that the president exercise his right of reconsideration (veto) over the Chae Sang-byung-Kim Gun-hee Special Prosecutor Act, actively participated in the Dec. 3 emergency martial law, revealed a plan for joint party-government management immediately after the martial law, and, as acting president, refused to recommend a candidate for a ‘permanent special prosecutor for civil unrest’ and refused to appoint a constitutional judge.

Four of the five members of the Constitutional Court's dismissal panel (Moon Hyung-bae, Im Seon, Kim Hyung-doo, and Jeong Jeong-mi) considered Han's refusal to appoint three constitutional judges elected by the National Assembly as acting president to be ‘unconstitutional,’ but not enough to dismiss him from office.

‘The prime minister violated his specific constitutional duty by expressing his intention to refuse to appoint the three judges elected by the National Assembly before receiving the notification of the election of the judges from the National Assembly, saying that he would appoint the judges based on the consensus of the ruling and opposition parties through a cabinet meeting or a discourse,’ they said. ’However, considering that there was an ongoing controversy regarding the role and scope of his role as acting president, it cannot be concluded that (the refusal to appoint the judges) constituted a case of betrayal of the people's trust.’

The court also found no constitutional violations in the remaining impeachment charges. Justice Kim Bok-hyung wrote the dismissal opinion, but said he could not see Prime Minister Han's appointment of judges as unconstitutional. ‘Until the National Assembly passed the bill to elect three judges on 26 December 2024 and the bill to impeach the prime minister on 27 December 2024, he (Han) never expressed his intention to refuse to appoint the three judges elected by the National Assembly as judges,’ Kim said.

On the other hand, Judge Jeong Gye-sun was of the opinion that Han should be dismissed for not appointing the judges and for failing to request a special prosecutor for the insurgency. These unconstitutional behaviours ‘amplified the controversy and confusion surrounding the rebellion investigation’ and were ‘grave enough to justify removal,’ according to Justice Chung.

Justices Jung Hyung-shik and Cho Han-chang dissented, arguing that the National Assembly impeached Han with an ordinary quorum (majority of members) when the same quorum (two-thirds or more) is required to impeach an acting president. However, the majority opinion stated, ‘Considering the purpose of the impeachment trial system, which is to protect the Constitution by depriving a person of public office, it is appropriate to apply a quorum to the impeachment of a prime minister who acts on behalf of the president.’

One-line summary : The Constitutional Court dismissed the impeachment case against Prime Minister Han Deok-soo by a vote of 5 (dismissed) to 3 (cited 1, dismissed 2).

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2. Large sinkhole in Seoul

A large sinkhole (ground out) occurred on a road in Gangdong-gu, Seoul, and one car and a motorbike fell into the sinkhole.

According to fire authorities on the 24th, a sinkhole the size of four lanes occurred at around 6:29 p.m. on Daemyeongchogyo Street in Myeongil-dong, Gangdong-gu.

Firefighters, who responded to a report that a passenger car and a motorbike had fallen into the sinkhole, are still trying to determine the cause of the sinkhole and the exact damage.

Firefighters reportedly rescued the driver of one vehicle from the scene of the accident and transported him to the hospital.

Employees from the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Road Management Division are also on the scene to assess the situation.

‘The intersection is under full traffic control in both directions,’ the Gangdong District Office said in a safety text, ’Please check traffic information in advance and use detour roads.’

One-line summary : A large sinkhole has opened up on a road in Gangdong-gu, Seoul, and a car and a motorbike have fallen into the sinkhole.