Page 10 - ARUBA TODAY

A10 WORLD NEWS
Saturday 10 december 2016
South Korean president is impeached in stunning fall

FOSTER KLUG tears. impeachment happened,
KIM TONG-HYUNG Hwang separately said many of those gathered
HYUNG-JIN KIM that he wanted “the ruling raised their hands in the air
Associated Press and opposition political and leapt about, cheering
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) parties and the parliament and laughing.
— South Korean lawmak- to gather strength and wis- “Can you hear the roar of
ers on Friday impeached dom so that we can return the people in front of the
President Park Geun-hye, stability to the country and National Assembly?” Kim
a stunning and swift fall people as soon as pos- Kwan-young, an opposi-
for the country’s first fe- sible.” tion lawmaker said ahead
male leader amid protests Once called the “Queen of the vote, referring to
that drew millions into the of Elections” for her ability South Korea’s formal
streets in united fury. to pull off wins for her party, name. “Our great people
After the vote, parliamen- Park has been surrounded have already opened the
tary officials hand-deliv- in the Blue House in recent way. Let’s make it so we
ered formal documents weeks by millions of South can stand honorably in
to the presidential Blue Koreans who have taken front of history and our de-
House that stripped Park to the streets in protest. scendants.”
of her power and allowed They are furious over what The handover of power
the country’s No. 2 official, prosecutors say was col- prompted the prime min-
Prime Minister Hwang Kyo- lusion by Park with a long- ister to order South Ko-
ahn, to assume leader- time friend to extort money rea’s defense minister to
ship until the Constitutional from companies and to put the military on a state
Court rules on whether give that confidante ex- of heightened readiness
Park must permanently traordinary sway over gov- to brace for any potential
step down. The court has ernment decisions. provocation by North Ko-
up to six months to decide. Organizers said about rea. No suspicious move-
“I’d like to say that I’m 10,000 people gathered ments by the North were
deeply sorry to the people in front of the National As- reported, however.
because the nation has to sembly to demand that Park will be formally re-
experience this turmoil be- lawmakers pass the im- moved from office if at
cause of my negligence peachment motion. Some least six of the Constitu-
and lack of virtue at a had spent the night on tional Court’s nine justices
time when our security and the streets after traveling support her impeachment,
economy both face diffi- South Korean President Park Geun-hye, front, and Prime Minister from other cities. Scuffles and the country would
culties,” Park said after the Hwang Kyo-ahn arrive to attend an emergency Cabinet meet- broke out between angry then hold a presidential
vote, before a closed-door ing at the presidential office in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Dec. anti-Park farmers, some of election within 60 days.
meeting with her Cabinet 9, 2016. South Korean lawmakers earlier on Friday impeached whom had driven tractors National Assembly speaker
where she and other aides Park, a stunning and swift fall for the country’s first female leader to the assembly from their Chung Sye-kyun said the
amid protests that drew millions into the streets in united fury.
reportedly broke down in (Baek Sung-ryul/Yonhap via AP) farms, and police. When bill on Park’s impeach-
ment was passed by a
vote of 234 for and 56 op-
Hong Kong leader Leung won’t seek another term posed, with seven invalid
votes and two abstentions.
That well surpassed the
KELVIN CHAN after his five-year term ends I have a responsibility,” said lawmakers, activists and necessary two-thirds vote
Associated Press next June. Leung, who has two other supporters, as well as be- needed in the 300-seat as-
HONG KONG (AP) — Hong “If I run for the next term children. “In my family, my cause of his ties to Chi- sembly, with the opposition
Kong’s Beijing-backed of the chief executive, I’m children only have one fa- na’s Communist leaders getting strong support from
leader, deeply unpopular afraid my family will come ther, my wife only has one that many believe are members of Park’s party.
because of his hard-line under unbearable pressure husband,” he said, adding deeper than his predeces- Present for the vote were
response to massive 2014 in the coming months,” he didn’t want to say more sors had. His popularity has relatives of the victims of
pro-democracy protests told reporters. “I must pro- publicly. Leung, a divisive steadily dwindled since he a 2014 ferry disaster that
and an ensuing separatist tect them.” figure who was chosen by took office. His approval killed more than 300 and
movement, said Friday he Hong Kong’s Apple Daily a panel of Beijing-friendly rating stood at 23 percent was blamed in part on
won’t seek another term in newspaper reported ear- tycoons and other Hong in late November, accord- government incompe-
office, citing family reasons. lier in the day that one of Kong elites, is loathed be- ing to Hong Kong University tence and corruption; they
In a surprise announce- his daughters has been in a cause of the tough stance pollsters carrying out regu- cheered and clapped af-
ment, Leung Chun-ying hospital for a month. his government has taken lar phone surveys of about ter the impeachment was
said he would step aside “As a father, as a husband, against pro-democracy 1,000 people. q announced. q