Constitutional Court directly refutes ruling party’s recusal claims

The Constitutional Court, currently reviewing President Yoon Suk Yeol’s impeachment case, strongly criticized the ruling party’s claims of judicial bias, saying, “There have been attempts to arbitrarily define the personal inclinations of Constitutional Court justices and distort the essence of the impeachment trial.” The court firmly rebutted the allegations, emphasizing that “the personal tendencies of the justices do not influence the impeachment trial.”

At a press briefing on Friday afternoon, Constitutional Court spokesperson Chun Jae-hyun said, “The presidential impeachment trial is conducted by objectively applying the Constitution and laws to determine whether the defendant (the president) has violated the Constitution or laws, and whether the violation is of significant severity. The personal inclinations of the justices do not influence it. The Constitutional Court expresses concern over potential infringements on the judiciary’s authority.”

Previously, the ruling People Power Party (PPP) criticized acting Chief Justice Moon Hyung-bae, pointing out his past social media interactions with Democratic Party of Korea leader Lee Jae-myung, as both were classmates from the 18th Judicial Research and Training Institute class. Regarding the ruling party’s demands for Justices Lee Mi-sun and Jeong Gye-seon to recuse themselves from the impeachment case, the Constitutional Court dismissed these claims, saying, “A mere subjective suspicion is not sufficient to argue that a justice cannot ensure a fair trial. There must be objectively verifiable instances that reasonably support such claims, in line with established Supreme Court precedents.”

The Constitutional Court’s remarks come in response to the ruling party’s concerns over the court’s impartiality and its discussions of recusals and disqualifications of justices. During a party meeting earlier in the day, PPP Emergency Committee Chairman Kwon Young-se argued that “past records of Constitutional Court justices revealing their political inclinations and their special relationships with certain political groups are being uncovered, leading to a loss of public trust in the court. Three of the eight Constitutional Court justices are members of the ‘Our Law Research Society,’ and some even call it the ‘Our Law Court’ instead of the Constitutional Court.”


Won-Mo Yu onemore@donga.com