South Korea’s impeached president gets a pay rise

SEOUL: Suspended South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will receive a scheduled pay rise, official documents showed on Monday, despite an impeachment trial and investigation into his ill-fated martial law declaration.

Yoon suspended civilian rule on December 3, sending soldiers into parliament and plunging South Korea into its worst political crisis in decades. He was forced to backtrack hours later.He has been impeached by lawmakers and is awaiting a final Constitutional Court ruling that could finalise his removal from office, while separately facing an insurrection probe with investigators seeking to detain him for questioning.

The document from the Ministry of Personnel Management, seen by AFP on Monday, indicates Yoon´s salary will rise to 262.6 million won ($178,400) -- a three percent raise compared with last year.

Yoon is only suspended from duty because the impeachment motion is still being deliberated by the Constitutional Court, so he retains his status as president and will be able to receive his salary and security benefits.