The South Korean government said yesterday it will ban the street rallies that have drawn thousands of people to either protest or support the unprecedented impeachment of President Roh Moo-hyun.
Citizens protesting the impeachment have rallied almost daily in downtown Seoul, holding candles and chanting, "Impeachment invalid!" Last weekend, pro-impeachment activists staged rival rallies.
Police consider the peaceful candlelight rallies illegal, but have not tried to disperse them, fearing possible violent clashes that would escalate political uncertainty in the wake of the National Assembly's unpopular March 12 impeachment vote.
The government said it will use police to prevent people from gathering for such rallies beginning today, when the official election campaign starts for April 15 National Assembly polls.
"Until now, the government has focused on keeping candlelight rallies peaceful, but it plans to block such gatherings because they could affect the election," government spokesman Jung Soon-kyun said.
The National Election Commission asked the government on Wednesday to ban pro- and anti-impeachment rallies. By law, all rallies that could affect election results are banned during the campaign period, except speeches by candidates.
The People's Coalition for Participatory Democracy, a major civic group opposing the impeachment, issued a statement accusing the election watchdog of misapplying the law against its rallies. But it did not say whether it will call another large rally this weekend.
Last Saturday, more than 100,000 people staged a sit-in in central Seoul to protest the impeachment.
On Sunday, 2,000 impeachment supporters also staged a sit-in in the capital's center.
The National Assembly impeached Roh for alleged election law violations and incompetence. Prime Minister Goh Kun has assumed Roh's duties while the Constitutional Court decides within 180 days whether to permanently unseat the president or reinstate his powers.
The Constitutional Court began unprecedented legal deliberations yesterday over whether to unseat Roh.
It was the second closed-door meeting of the nine-member court since the opposition-controlled assembly voted to impeach Roh, suspending his presidential powers. But justices discussed legal points in the case for the first time.
"Until now, we have discussed procedural matters. Today we will actually start deliberating on the case itself," judge Choo Sun-hoe told reporters before entering the courthouse.
After the session ended, Choo said the judges "discussed various issues." He refused to give details.
The case is the country's first-ever presidential impeachment trial, and Choo said the judges were also reviewing instances in which heads of state have been impeached overseas.
Last week, the court summoned Roh to attend the first public hearing scheduled for next Tuesday. But the embattled leader has refused to testify in his own defense.
Despite Roh's refusal, the court said yesterday that court regulations require it to convene a public hearing on Tuesday as scheduled to see if Roh attends. If he does not show up, the court will immediately adjourn after announcing a new date for the next hearing.
The new hearing will proceed regardless of Roh's attendance, court spokesman Chun Sang-bo said.
The court has a maximum of six months to decide whether to unseat the suspended president or dismiss the parliamentary impeachment and restore Roh's presidential powers.
The National Assembly needs at least six judges to uphold its vote to impeach Roh.
RESPONSE: The transit sends a message that China’s alignment with other countries would not deter the West from defending freedom of navigation, an academic said Canadian frigate the Ville de Quebec and Australian guided-missile destroyer the Brisbane transited the Taiwan Strait yesterday morning, the first time the two nations have conducted a joint freedom of navigation operation. The Canadian and Australian militaries did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Ministry of National Defense declined to confirm the passage, saying only that Taiwan’s armed forces had deployed surveillance and reconnaissance assets, along with warships and combat aircraft, to safeguard security across the Strait. The two vessels were observed transiting northward along the eastern side of the Taiwan Strait’s median line, with Japan being their most likely destination,
GLOBAL ISSUE: If China annexes Taiwan, ‘it will not stop its expansion there, as it only becomes stronger and has more force to expand further,’ the president said China’s military and diplomatic expansion is not a sole issue for Taiwan, but one that risks world peace, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that Taiwan would stand with the alliance of democratic countries to preserve peace through deterrence. Lai made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times). “China is strategically pushing forward to change the international order,” Lai said, adding that China established the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank, launched the Belt and Road Initiative, and pushed for yuan internationalization, because it wants to replace the democratic rules-based international
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
The National Development Council (NDC) yesterday unveiled details of new regulations that ease restrictions on foreigners working or living in Taiwan, as part of a bid to attract skilled workers from abroad. The regulations, which could go into effect in the first quarter of next year, stem from amendments to the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及僱用法) passed by lawmakers on Aug. 29. Students categorized as “overseas compatriots” would be allowed to stay and work in Taiwan in the two years after their graduation without obtaining additional permits, doing away with the evaluation process that is currently required,
RSS