Impeachment Hearing

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The final hearing in President Park Geun-hye’s impeachment trial takes place on Monday at the Constitutional Court. The president has decided not to attend the hearing. Here’s more.

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President Park Geun-hye has notified the Constitutional Court of her decision not to attend the final court hearing on her impeachment motion on Monday. Earlier, the Constitutional Court postponed the date of the final hearing to Monday from the initially scheduled date of February 24th, and requested Park to let it know whether or not she would attend the hearing. Park's attorney Lee Jung-hwan said he was not aware of the exact reason for Park's decision not to attend the hearing, and that her attorneys were split on the matter. He said that some of the president's attorneys argued that it would help her to attend the hearing and explain her stance, while others were opposed and said that her attendance would be tantamount to acknowledging the legitimacy of the eight-judge system and the overall judgment process, which is nearing its end. Analysts say that Park decided not to attend the final hearing because she felt pressure over being questioned by the court and the National Assembly. In addition, she may have wanted to avoid setting the precedent of an incumbent president being tried in court. Some of the president's attorneys mentioned the possibility of Park providing her final testimony in the form of a video or written letter, but the plan was scrapped.

[Soundbite] Seo Sung-keon(Pres. Park Geun-hye's Attorney) : "In addition to the pros and cons, there are many other issues to consider."

On Sunday, some of the Constitutional Court judges arrived at the court amid tight security to review the judgment process.