About 1,200 supporters of suspended South Korean President Yoon Seok-yeol gathered outside the presidential residence on Friday as investigators try to arrest the president, Yonhap news agency reported.
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Earlier it was reported that about 2.7 thousand police officers were mobilized to the residence of the President of South Korea to maintain order.
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According to Yonhap, about 1.2 thousand supporters gathered near the presidential residence. They chanted slogans declaring the illegality of the arrest warrant against the president.
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Yoon Seok Yeol earlier addressed his supporters who gathered daily outside his residence, saying he saw their efforts broadcast on YouTube, and thanked them for “defending constitutional order, freedom and democracy.”
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It was previously reported that the Seoul Western District Court issued a warrant for his arrest and search of his residence at the request of an investigation team consisting of the Corrupt Practices Investigation Office (CIO), police and the Defense Ministry’s investigation department.
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150 personnel were deployed to execute the arrest warrant, including 30 CIO officers and 120 Special Police Unit officers. Of these, 80 people entered the residence, and 70 police officers waited outside, although some were later additionally involved in the operation. The presidential security service refused to allow investigators to search the residence building.
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It is reported that if unsuccessful today, investigators may try to arrest the president again while the warrant is valid until January 6. But then the number of supporters of the president protesting outside the residence is expected to increase over the weekend, making the arrest even more difficult. The level of support for the president, which had already dropped to a record 11%, rose again against the backdrop of what was happening.
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According to the research company Korea Information Research, which, commissioned by the Cheongji Ilbo publication, conducted a survey among 1,008 citizens over 18 years of age on December 29-30, President Yoon Seok-yeol’s approval rating has increased significantly, reaching 36.1%. Also, 44.7% of respondents believe that impeachment of the president will not benefit national interests. 61.6% have a negative assessment of the president’s performance, while 2.3% of those undecided. In just one week, President Yoon Seok-yeol’s approval rating increased by 7.7 percentage points, while the share of negative ratings decreased by 5.0 percentage points.
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As noted by the local publication PS News, an increase in support is observed not only among supporters of the ruling Civil Power party, but also among moderate and progressive groups of the population. This comes amid backlash against opposition actions including “abuse of legislative power“, back-to-back impeachments and alleged “excessive actions” by the Corrupt Practices Investigation Office (CIO) against the President.
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If the arrest is successful, Yoon Seok Yeol will be taken for questioning to the Department, where he can be held for 48 hours by law. During this time, the investigation must decide whether to request detention or not. If a long-term arrest warrant is requested, the court will decide whether to keep the president in custody or not.
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At the same time, the president’s lawyers and the ruling party claim that the warrants issued to search the residence and arrest the president are illegal.
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President Yoon Seok-yeol’s lawyer, Yoon Gap-keun, announced his intention to take legal action in response to investigators’ attempt to arrest the suspended but still sitting president. The Civil Power Party threatened to impeach the judge who issued the warrant.
