S Korea lawmakers set impeachment vote in motion

South Korea’s parliament on Thursday introduced an impeachment motion against President Park Geun-Hye, ahead of a vote seeking her ouster over a corruption scandal that has riveted the country and paralysed her administration.

The motion, which accuses Park of constitutional and criminal violations ranging from a failure to protect people’s lives to bribery and abuse of power, will be put to a full vote of the National Assembly on Friday. If adopted, it will go to the Constitutional Court for final approval which, if granted, would result in Park becoming the first democratically elected South Korean president not to complete her full five-year term.

Park has said she would accept a parliamentary decision to impeach her, but also that she would remain in office while the motion is being considered by the court – a process that could take months.