'Oh Se-hoon Acquittal' Reignites Calls to 'Impeach Cho Hee-dae'

[Anchor]

Following the appellate court's acquittal of Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, voices calling for the impeachment of Supreme Court Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae are growing louder within the pan-ruling camp [1]. To the Democratic Party's claim that grounds for impeachment have increased following the refusal of re-recommendations, the People Power Party pushed back, asking if everything must always lead to impeachment.

Kim Kwan-jin reports.

[Reporter]

At the Democratic Party Supreme Council meeting yesterday morning (October 26),

Party Leader Kim Min-seok was the first to question the fairness of Mayor Oh Se-hoon's trial.

[Kim Min-seok / Democratic Party Leader: "What citizen would accept a reality where guilt, innocence, and sentences for major cases drastically shift depending on political standards?"]

Floor Leader Han Byung-do directly demanded that the Supreme Court correct Mayor Oh's ruling.

There was even a call for introducing AI judges.

[Choi Min-hee / Democratic Party Supreme Council Member: "I believe the remaining judicial reform is the introduction of AI judges. I will examine it carefully and prepare legislation."]

The Rebuilding Korea Party, along with Candlelight Action—a civic group that has spearheaded prosecution reform—also pressured lawmakers to carry out the impeachment.

[Yeom Mi-rye / Co-Representative, Gangseo-Yeongdeungpo Candlelight Action: "Failing to impeach Cho Hee-dae is a dereliction of duty by the National Assembly. The public will never forgive the National Assembly's dereliction of duty."]

The National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, where the impeachment of Chief Justice Cho had been brought up throughout the parliamentary audit, also clashed even more fiercely following the ruling on Mayor Oh.

Against the Democratic Party's assertion that the grounds for impeachment have expanded due to Mayor Oh's ruling, the People Power Party countered that it was nonsensical.

[Kwak Kyu-taek / People Power Party Lawmaker: "Claiming that the grounds to impeach the Chief Justice have increased because Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon was acquitted? Are you out of your minds? Shouldn't you first protest why the trial concerning President Lee Jae-myung isn't proceeding swiftly?"]

[Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: "Are you going to impeach Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae every time the Supreme Court or the courts don't deliver the ruling you want? Impeachment at every turn—isn't this what truly undermines the independence of the judiciary?"]

The Democratic Party plans to continue discussions on the impeachment during its general caucus meeting today.

Mayor Oh Se-hoon, visibly unburdened following the second-instance acquittal, is expanding his outreach both inside and outside the party.

Yesterday morning, he exchanged greetings with the People Power Party leadership at a memorial service for former President Park Chung-hee, and following yesterday, he plans to host a dinner at his official residence today with several opposition lawmakers.

With the dinner guest list including not only People Power Party lawmakers but also Reform Party Lawmaker Lee Jun-seok, interpretations suggest Mayor Oh has embarked on a full-scale push to unify conservatives.

Video by Oh Young-chun and Kim Yong-woo | Video Editing by Jang Hyun-ki
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.