South Korean President Park Geun-Hye on Tuesday for the first time declared their readiness to resign. The President said that her only wish “as soon as possible to save South Korea from the reigning chaos and bring the situation back to normal” (quoted by TASS).
Rasputin in a skirt
President Park was at the center of a political scandal a month ago, after from media publications, it became known that in fact her actions led by longtime friend Choi sung-SIL, who, using his connections with the President, forced the South Korean corporations to make multimillion-dollar donations to associated funds. The total amount of funds received exceeded $100 million No official government posts Choi did not hold.
That the President discusses state Affairs with a friend, it became known to the end of October, when reporters of channel JTBC found in a dumpster one of the capital’s hotels tablet computer with hundreds of documents, dozens of which were transcripts of speeches, Park Geun-Hye. It was later established that the tablet belonged to Choi.
From the array of documentation showed that Pak Choi sent for edits and approval of his speech and also discussed with her sensitive events, such as talks with the previous President Lee Myung-bak or intelligence data about contacts between North and South Korean military. As it turned out, share with a friend documents Pak started a week after winning the presidential election in December 2012.
The President and her informal adviser familiar from childhood. Father Choi was the founder of a religious cult. After as a result of the attacks killed the mother of the pack, and then her father (former President of South Korea, Park Chung-Hee), Choi Sr. and his daughter began to the girl’s closest friends.
Meetings and new business
Publications about the President media led to mass protests across the country, which are held regularly. The mass meeting took place on 12 November in Seoul, was attended by about a million people. The protesters are demanding the resignation of the President. Pak tried to restore the credibility of the government, dismissing in the beginning of November the government of Prime Minister Hwang Geena and ten of their advisors and assistants, but it didn’t help. The President’s rating had fallen below 5%.
The day after the resignation of the government, 3 November, Choi was arrested. She was charged with extortion and interference in the Affairs of state. The Prosecutor General of Korea also officially announced that he considers President Park’s accomplice Choi in several corruption episodes, but indicated that to pursue the President can not, because he is immune.
Pak she apologized only for “the leak” to his girlfriend the texts of presidential speeches before they were publicly read.
In the second half of November, there was another scandal connected with the name of Park Geun-Hye. According to one of the opposition deputies, employees of the presidential administration, has acquired almost 400 tablets of viagra. The administration confirmed this information, noting that the drug was bought for use not its main purpose, and to deal with high-altitude hypoxia during the visit of the delegation headed by the President to Ethiopia, Uganda and Kenya in may 2016. According to the newspaper Straits Times, viagra really helps to combat high-altitude hypoxia.
All against one
On Tuesday, 64-year-old President once again apologized to the citizens of the country and noted the need to smooth the process of transition of power. “I rely on the National Assembly in all that concerns my future, including the reduction of my term in office — said Pak. — If the ruling party and the opposition will figure out how to avoid a governmental vacuum and to ensure a stable transfer of power, I will retire according to legal procedure at the appropriate time”.
As marks South Korean Agency “RenCap”, the decision of the PAC to make such a speech could influence the events of recent days, namely the statements of various politicians condemned the President.
Representatives of the two largest opposition democratic party “Taboro” and the people’s party on Monday said that by 2 December he would submit to Parliament a draft bill of impeachment of the President. The President’s supporters from the ruling conservative saenuri party on Monday also supported a “worthy” President’s resignation.
For the impeachment of the President requires that two-thirds of the 300 deputies of the unicameral Parliament (National Assembly) supported this process. The ruling “Senuri” the Parliament has 128 seats, or 43% of the seats, which theoretically allows it to block the initiative of the opposition.
In any case, if a positive decision of the National Assembly the final approval of impeachment is the constitutional court, also two thirds of the votes of a bench of nine judges. “The problem is that soon the two of them retire by age, and for decision requires the consent of six of the judges — said the Director of the Center for Asian strategy of Russia of the Institute of Economics Georgy Toloraya. — And most of the judges had been appointed the Park Geun-Hye, and not the fact that they will support her resignation”.
By law, the President of the Republic of Korea is elected only for one term of five years. The powers of the Pak are coming to an end: the next elections are due in December 2017. But in the case of her resignation, early elections must be held within 60 days. According to Toloraya Korean elite is now confused and talking about the successor to Pak yet. “In the past, this was seen as the outgoing UN Secretary General ban Ki-moon, but in these circumstances his nomination doubtful,” he says.
In conversation with a leading researcher of the Center for Korean studies Institute of the Far East Eugene Kim said that the opposition is in a hurry with the impeachment, because now the ruling party has no candidate for the presidency. According to him, among the opposition politicians most likely the former contender for the presidency moon Jae-In and the current mayor of Seoul Park Won-soon.
In the history of South Korea has been trying to send the President to resign through impeachment. However, in 2004, the constitutional court refused to endorse the impeachment of President Roh Moo-Hyun, although the Parliament voted “for”. He was accused of illegal call to support in the parliamentary elections his party.
The impact on Russia
South Korea joined the sanctions against Russia, but the bilateral trade volume is reduced. In 2014 it reached $25.8 billion, and a year later fell by 38% to $16 billion Political dialogue between the two countries developed actively. President Park Geun-Hye and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe were honorary members of the Eastern economic forum, held in September in Vladivostok.
“The crisis in South Korea will not affect relations with Russia — all political forces in this country are focused on the US,” says Eugene Kim.
