Seoul, Dec 7 (IANS) A special counsel team on Sunday indicted former People Power Party (PPP) floor leader Representative Choo Kyung-ho on charges related to ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol’s failed martial law bid last December.
Special counsel Cho Eun-suk’s investigation team said Choo was indicted without physical detention on allegations that he blocked party lawmakers from participating in a parliamentary vote to lift the martial law decree issued on December 3 last year.
The team had sought an arrest warrant for Choo, but a Seoul court denied it last week, citing room for dispute regarding the facts of the case and insufficient grounds for the need for his formal arrest, Yonhap News Agency reported.
Choo, once considered a key ally of Yoon, is accused of deliberately and repeatedly changing the venue of an emergency party meeting on the night of December 3 at the request of Yoon. The PPP was the ruling party when Yoon was the President.
Due to the changes, only 18 of the PPP’s 108 lawmakers took part in the parliamentary vote to lift Yoon’s decree, which passed unanimously early the next morning among the 190 lawmakers present.
Choo immediately denounced prosecutors for what he called an “unwarranted” indictment based on fabricated charges, claiming he had not received any request from Yoon regarding martial law.
“The special counsel proceeded ahead with its political indictment without further evidence, even after its request for an arrest warrant was dismissed for failing to substantiate the charges,” Choo said in a press release, accusing the investigation team of political persecution.
In late November, the National Assembly approved a motion for Choo’s arrest. By law, sitting lawmakers are immune from arrest while Parliament is in session and can only be put under arrest with consent from the Assembly.
Meanwhile, the special counsel team also indicted former Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn without physical detention on charges of inciting an insurrection following Yoon’s martial law decree. He also faces charges of special obstruction of public duty.
Hwang, who served under former President Park Geun-hye, wrote messages on his Facebook account following Yoon’s brief imposition of martial law, calling for rooting out pro-North Korea forces and those involved in alleged electoral fraud.
He also called for the arrest of National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik and then PPP leader Han Dong-hoon.
A court also denied a warrant to arrest Hwang last month, citing insufficient explanations for the need for his arrest.
–IANS
int/akl/vd
