Yoon refuses questioning, challenges arrest

SEOUL: South Korea’s arrested President Yoon Suk Yeol did not attend a second day of questioning by investigators on Thursday, further stonewalling a criminal probe into whether he committed insurrection with his bid to impose martial law.

Yoon on Wednesday became the first sitting South Korean president to be arrested and was held at the Seoul Detention Centre after refusing to cooperate.

He remained in the centre on Thursday, with his lawyer citing his health as a factor for his absence from the questioning. The investigators did not elaborate on why they did not compel him to attend.

Authorities have 48 hours to question the suspended president, after which they must release him or seek a warrant to detain him for up to 20 days. That countdown has been paused, however, as his lawyers have asked a court to review the legality of the arrest.

Yoon’s refusal to cooperate with investigators comes as the Constitutional Court held a second hearing in his impeachment trial to determine whether to remove him permanently or reinstate his presidential powers.

South Korea is grappling with its worst political crisis in decades, sparked by Yoon’s brief attempt to impose martial law on Dec. 3 that was voted down by parliament.

In opening arguments at the Constitutional Court, an opposition Democratic Party lawmaker condemned Yoon for “the Dec. 3 insurrection” and said Yoon and a small number of supporters had sought to stoke chaos by refusing to accept his arrest warrant.

“This impeachment trial decides whether or not to bring someone like this back to the position of commander-in-chief in control of the military,” said Jung Chung-rae, the lawmaker who heads parliament’s Legislation and Judiciary Committee.

In response, one of Yoon’s defence team said his impeachment was not intended to defend the constitution but for the opposition “to use the majority power of parliament to usurp the position of the president”.