South Korea's Constitutional Court upholds Park's impeachment

The Dollar Business Bureau

South Korea's Constitutional Court, on March 10, 2017, after a prolonged period of political unrest, upheld the impeachment of Park Geun-Hye. The verdict of the Constitutional Court has brought to a close the controversy surrounding the fall of the first woman president in all of Northeast Asia. 

The former President of South Korea was charged with multiple charges of corruption, bribery and influence-peddling, following which, she was impeached by the National Assembly in December 2016. 

Park had colluded with Choi Soon-sil, her long-time close aid, to extort money and favours from top notch Korean businesses like Samsung. Lee Jae-Yong, Samsung chief, has also been on trial for bribery and perjury. The scandal rocked the political landscape of South Korea like never before and was accompanied by a drastic plummeting of Park's approval ratings. 

The scandal has caused widespread polarisation of the South Korean population. Although supporters of Park's impeachment form majority of the population, the rebel groups demanding Park's acquittal are just as fierce. With protesters and political activists on either side not willing to budge, the atmosphere is becoming increasingly strained. One way of mollifying Park supporters is for Park to herself acknowledge the court's decision, which would mean accepting the charges. From her stiff defensive stance in the past, it is highly unlikely that she will concede. 

Park's successor will be elected in the next two months. Moon Jae-in, who lost to Park in 2012, is the most popular candidate for the presidency, as suggested by opinion polls. Whoever takes the mantle of the presidency from the ousted leader will inherit an economy struggling with stagnation and facing a hostile neighbour in North Korea.