By Hyunhee Shin
SEOUL (Reuters) – Thousands braved heavy snow in Seoul on Sunday to protest for and against the arrest of ousted President Yoon Suk-yeol, as South Korea's political crisis appeared to be heading toward another high-stakes confrontation.
As the arrest warrant against Yoon for sedition expired at midnight on Monday (1500 GMT), multiple groups held demonstrations near his official residence, with some urging his immediate arrest and others protesting.
Yoon became the country's first president to face arrest over his failed attempt to declare martial law on December 3, which sparked political chaos that engulfed Asia's fourth-largest economy and a key US ally.
Parliament dismissed the conservative president and suspended him from exercising his official duties while the court decided whether to return him to his position or remove him. On Friday, criminal investigators were prevented from arresting him by Lyon's presidential security service and military forces in a six-hour standoff.
On Sunday, some protesters gathered overnight in downtown Seoul, where temperatures dropped to below minus 5 degrees Celsius (23 degrees Fahrenheit). Snow accumulated more than five centimeters high in parts of the capital, which were under a warning of heavy snowfall.
“We have to re-establish the foundation of our society by punishing the president who has denied the constitution,” said Yang Kyung-soo, leader of the Korean Federation of Trade Unions, a major labor group that participated in the protests.
“We must bring down the criminal Yoon Suk-yeol and arrest and detain him as soon as possible.”
Nearby, Yoon's supporters held signs reading “We will fight for President Yoon Suk-yeol” and “Stop the Steal,” a phrase popularized by supporters of US President-elect Donald Trump after he lost the 2016 election.
Similar rallies attracted tens of thousands on Saturday, prompting police to try to disperse Korean Federation of Trade Union demonstrators who were occupying roads and disrupting traffic. Yonhap News Agency reported that two were arrested on charges of assaulting police officers.
On Saturday, the Senior Officials Corruption Investigation Bureau, which is leading the criminal investigation into Yoon, again asked acting President Choi Sang-mok, the finance minister, to order the security service to comply with the arrest warrant.
A Ministry of Finance spokesman declined to comment.
