The South Korean government said yesterday it would crack down on political unrest as financial markets brushed off fears of instability to bounce back on the first working day following the impeachment of President Roh Moo-hyun.
Candlelight protests that drew tens of thousands of people to the streets of Seoul for the past two nights were outlawed as interim leader, Prime Minister Goh Kun, pledged to restore stability to the economy, guarantee security and oversee the run-up to crucial April 15 general elections.
PHOTO: AP
Any political unrest would be harshly dealt with, the government warned.
"Any moves or rallies that cause social disorder will be strictly dealt with in accordance with laws and principle," a government statement said.
Earlier, police outlawed candlelight rallies that drew some 100,000 people to the streets of Seoul over the weekend.
"Evening candlelight rallies in the street are illegal," said senior police superintendent Kim Ok-jeon, in charge of security in Seoul.
"According to the law, we will use force to disperse rallies if participants pay no heed to repeated warnings to disperse," Kim said.
Goh, 66, said he would ensure government neutrality in the run-up to next month's election.
"With just 30 days to go before the elections, we face a difficult political situation," Goh said following a Cabinet meeting. "The government must maintain its neutrality for fair elections."
Roh's impeachment polarized politics and inflamed passions here and protesters said they planned daily demonstrations in the run-up to next month's vote.
North Korea condemned the National Assembly vote to unseat Roh and pulled out of inter-Korean economic talks scheduled to start yesterday in South Korea after demanding a change of venue, citing political unrest sparked by the
impeachment.
The South's Unification Ministry accused the North of seeking to exploit its problems and has expressed regret in a letter sent to Pyongyang.
North Korea termed the impeachment a political rebellion against the wishes of tens of millions of South Korean people and said the US was behind the move.
Goh has already put South Korea's 700,000-strong military on heightened alert to counter Pyong-yang, engaged in a 13-month nuclear standoff which is considered a major threat to world peace.
Washington has declined to comment on the impeachment saga, saying the matter was South Korea's internal affair.
Finance Minister Lee Hun-jae has attempted to reassure the markets and international investors that political instability will not trouble the tentative economic recovery in Asia's fourth largest economy.
The two main opposition parties, the Grand National Party and the Millennium Democratic Party, joined forces to impeach Roh last Friday after he was reprimanded by a government watchdog for illegal electioneering before general elections scheduled for April 15.
More than 70 percent of South Koreans opposed impeachment, according to opinion polls.
Roh was suspended from office following the vote and Goh took over as interim president. The case is under review by the Constitutional Court which will rule within 180 days whether to uphold the vote or restore Roh to power.
LANDMARK CASE: ‘Every night we were dragged to US soldiers and sexually abused. Every week we were forced to undergo venereal disease tests,’ a victim said More than 100 South Korean women who were forced to work as prostitutes for US soldiers stationed in the country have filed a landmark lawsuit accusing Washington of abuse, their lawyers said yesterday. Historians and activists say tens of thousands of South Korean women worked for state-sanctioned brothels from the 1950s to 1980s, serving US troops stationed in country to protect the South from North Korea. In 2022, South Korea’s top court ruled that the government had illegally “established, managed and operated” such brothels for the US military, ordering it to pay about 120 plaintiffs compensation. Last week, 117 victims
China on Monday announced its first ever sanctions against an individual Japanese lawmaker, targeting China-born Hei Seki for “spreading fallacies” on issues such as Taiwan, Hong Kong and disputed islands, prompting a protest from Tokyo. Beijing has an ongoing spat with Tokyo over islands in the East China Sea claimed by both countries, and considers foreign criticism on sensitive political topics to be acts of interference. Seki, a naturalised Japanese citizen, “spread false information, colluded with Japanese anti-China forces, and wantonly attacked and smeared China”, foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian told reporters on Monday. “For his own selfish interests, (Seki)
Argentine President Javier Milei on Sunday vowed to “accelerate” his libertarian reforms after a crushing defeat in Buenos Aires provincial elections. The 54-year-old economist has slashed public spending, dismissed tens of thousands of public employees and led a major deregulation drive since taking office in December 2023. He acknowledged his party’s “clear defeat” by the center-left Peronist movement in the elections to the legislature of Buenos Aires province, the country’s economic powerhouse. A deflated-sounding Milei admitted to unspecified “mistakes” which he vowed to “correct,” but said he would not be swayed “one millimeter” from his reform agenda. “We will deepen and accelerate it,” he
Japan yesterday heralded the coming-of-age of Japanese Prince Hisahito with an elaborate ceremony at the Imperial Palace, where a succession crisis is brewing. The nephew of Japanese Emperor Naruhito, Hisahito received a black silk-and-lacquer crown at the ceremony, which marks the beginning of his royal adult life. “Thank you very much for bestowing the crown today at the coming-of-age ceremony,” Hisahito said. “I will fulfill my duties, being aware of my responsibilities as an adult member of the imperial family.” Although the emperor has a daughter — Princess Aiko — the 23-year-old has been sidelined by the royal family’s male-only
RSS