News / Koreas

South Korean presidential hopeful vows justice in post-Park era

Sunday, 12 March 2017 7:33 AM [ Last Update: Sunday, 12 March 2017 7:54 AM ]

South Korean politician Moon Jae-in, from the Democratic Party, speaks during a press conference in Seoul, March 12, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

South Korean liberal politician Moon Jae-in, who is likely to succeed ousted president Park Geun-hye, has promised justice and common sense if he wins office.

Speaking on Sunday, Moon, who reportedly plans to run in the snap election scheduled to be held by May 9, also vaguely called for “regime change.”

“We still have a long way to go. We have to make this a country of justice, of common sense through regime change, we all have to work together for a complete victory,” Moon told a press conference in the South Korean capital, Seoul.

On Friday, South Korea’s Constitutional Court ruled to uphold a parliamentary vote to impeach Park and permanently dismiss her from office over an influence-peddling scandal. The snap election has been scheduled as a result of that development.

The 65-year-old Park is South Korea’s first democratically-elected president to be removed from office after months of political paralysis and turmoil over a wide-ranging corruption scandal that rattled the nation’s top corporations, also landing the head of the Samsung conglomerate in jail facing trial.

The state-run Yonhap news agency said that Park was expected to leave the official presidential complex known as the Blue House as soon as renovation work on her private residence was finished.

Moon said it would be “cruel” to force Park out of the presidential palace before her private home was prepared.

But he warned Park against the destruction or removal of any documents.

Opinion polls see Moon, who prominently advocates reconciliation with North Korea, in the lead as Park’s successor.

South Korean demonstrators shoot off firecrackers to celebrate the impeachment of Park Geun-hye during a candle-lit rally demanding her arrest, in Seoul, March 11, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

Following months of weekend gatherings, thousands of people opposed to Park’s rule took to the streets in Seoul on Saturday to celebrate her departure and demand the apprehension of the ousted president.

Confrontations occurred during rival rallies, and at least three people were reported killed in the skirmishes.

Constitutional overhaul

Meanwhile, South Korean politicians from several parties, including Park’s conservative peers, seek to make changes to the country’s 3-decade-old constitution simultaneously with the election of a new president in May.

They say South Koreans should vote on a new constitution to ensure that the country would never again see a leader like Park.

The changes would reportedly be based on power-sharing, where the president would be limited to handling foreign affairs and national security and the prime minister in charge of domestic affairs.

Moon’s party is opposed to the constitutional overhaul.

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