Citizens hail the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye in a rally Friday outside parliament.[Yonhap News Photo]
Many citizens hailed the impeachment of South Korea's disgraced leader Par Geun-hye Friday as a victory of people power and democracy saying the country opened a new chapter in its political history.
Thusands of protesters shouting "We won!" clapped and danced together in a festive mood outside parliament, waving placards calling for Park's arrest, after impeachment was approved in a televised parliamentary vote.
"Impeachment is the outcome of our great candle-lit rallies. This is just the beggining of our march," rally organizers said, pledging continued protests calling for Park's early resignation and arrest.
Park, who took office in early 2013 as South Korea's first female president, has resisted popular demands for her voluntary resignation to assume responsibility for a corruption scandal involving her crony, Choi Soon-sil.
The impeachment followed a series of anti-government protests that have seen millions of citizens staging peaceful candle-lit rallies in an unprecedented demonstration of people power.
Since late October, the scandal has put South Korea into a political quagmire, paralyzing state affairs and aggravating economic woes. Many citizens have been left with a deep sense of malaise and frustration. But they now feel proud for opening a new chapter in South Korea's turbulent political history.
Young girls, high-school students, middle-aged citizens, housewives and their children carrying candles and paper placards have gathered for an orderly march near the heavily guarded presidential Blue House to press their demands for Park's ouster, showing a mature civic awareness.
Such a scene was unthinkable under the 18-year rule of President Park's father who seized power in a military coup in 1961. The late president, assassinated in 1979 by his intelligence chief, was credited with pioneering South Korea's rapid industrialization. At the same time, he was criticized for the brutal suppression of democracy.
Park has flatly refused to step down by herself, although she admitted she should be blamed for mismanagement. With Friday's vote, she should stay away from all state affairs and relinquish her duty to the prime minister.
[Yonhap News Photo]
Park was impeached for bribery and allowing Choi to meddle in state affairs and extort money from conglomerates. She was also accused of failing to protect the lives of the people on April 16, 2014, when a ferry packed with high-school students sank with the loss of more than 300 lives.
Despite her repeated denials, Park has been dogged by rumors that she was not in office for seven hours at that time for unspecified personal reasons.
Regardless of impeachment, many citizens are determined to oust Park for hurting South Korea's national image and creating an international ridicule.
If Park resigns, she could be potentially prosecuted because state prosecutors described her as an accomplice. An independent counsel has been appointed to lead a special counsel probe into Park's role in the scandal.
Aju News Lim Chang-won = cwlim34@ajunews.com
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
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