South Korean Constitutional Court overturns justice minister's impeachment

10/4/2025 16:25

South Korea's Constitutional Court overturned on Thursday parliament's impeachment of Justice Minister Park Sung-jae for his involvement in the December 3 martial law declaration by ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol, a court official said.



Park was impeached in December by parliament, after being accused of aiding Yoon when the then president briefly imposed martial law, an action that triggered the country's worst political crisis in decades.



The court ruled to remove Yoon from office last week saying he violated his duty as president by declaring martial law without just grounds and acted beyond his constitutional powers inflicting "a serious challenge to democracy."



Park and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo were the two cabinet members to be impeached, although both denied supporting Yoon's actions.



Han was reinstated in late March and resumed his role as acting president. He will continue in the post until a new presidential election is held on June 3.