UPDATES THROUGHOUT
By Alex Jensen
SEOUL (AA) - South Korean President Park Geun-hye said Tuesday she will allow lawmakers to decide whether to “shorten” her term, as she made her third public apology since becoming embroiled in a corruption scandal last month.
Stopping short of an immediate resignation, Park conceded she would follow steps determined by the country’s National Assembly -- where the liberal opposition parties combined hold a majority of seats.
“If the ruling and opposition parties devise a method to minimize any confusion or vacuum in state governance and ensure the stable transition of government, I will step down in line with the timeline and legal procedures,” the president said during a televised address.
Park refused to answer questions from reporters who called out to her as she walked away from a crescendo of camera shutters.
The opposition bloc earlier in the day unveiled their plan for an impeachment vote this Friday after five weekends of street rallies demanding the president’s resignation.
On Saturday, nearly two million people protested nationwide.
While anti-Park lawmakers from the ruling Saenuri Party would likely ensure a two-thirds majority for an impeachment motion, it is less certain that there would be an easy agreement on a political transition in the notoriously deadlock-prone assembly.
The president is protected from criminal prosecution for now by her position, and she has so far resisted questioning by state prosecutors after they named her as a suspect in their power abuse case against several figures close to Park and her arrested secret confidante Choi Soon-sil.
A list of accusations against them includes pressuring conglomerates to make donations, using their influence for personal gain, and leaking government documents.
Although Park denied pursuing “personal interests” during her political career of around two decades, a lawmaker from the main opposition claimed she could be hit with a lengthy prison sentence once removed from office.
“Based on our calculations, advised by legal experts, Park may face a 45-year jail term,” the Democratic Party’s Yun Ho-jung was quoted as saying by local news agency Yonhap.