Seoul police prepare to 'prevent conflict' at Yoon impeachment verdict

SEOUL: South Korean police are prepared to mobilise “all available equipment” to prevent unrest when a court announces whether it upholds the impeachment of the country’s suspended president, Seoul’s police chief said Monday.

The Constitutional Court is expected to announce its decision on the impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol this month over his declaration of martial law, with both supporters and opponents of the disgraced leader set to gather in Seoul’s streets.

Yoon’s short-lived suspension of civilian rule plunged democratic South Korea into political turmoil and he was detained in a dawn raid in January on insurrection grounds, although released over the weekend on procedural grounds.

His supporters have already stormed a Seoul court once, smashing the doors and windows of a district court in Seoul after a judge there extended Yoon’s detention, and authorities have warned of violence around the impending verdict.

“Clashes in and around the Constitutional Court must be prevented,” said Park Hyun-soo, acting chief of Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency.

“We plan to mobilise all available equipment, including barricades, and designate the area within 100 metres of the Constitutional Court as a protest-free zone, effectively creating a ‘vacuum’ in that space,” Park told reporters at a news conference.

“We must protect the Constitutional Court justices while also preventing conflicts between opposing groups on the impeachment issue.”

Park said police were undergoing additional training involving the use of pepper spray and police batons, adding that the agency was also considering deploying police special forces to “respond to bomb threats”.

Schools nearby are reportedly considering closing down on the day of the verdict, with nearby construction sites and petrol stations set to be closed, due to concerns “that protest and demonstration materials could be stored” at those sites, said Park.

In addition to the impeachment verdict, Yoon also faces a criminal trial on charges of insurrection for declaring martial law in December, making him the first sitting South Korean president to stand trial in a criminal case.

Prosecutor General Shim Woo-jung told reporters on Monday that the prosecution would continue pursuing the case despite Yoon’s unexpected release from detention.

“We will ensure strong efforts to sustain the prosecution’s case,” said Shim.