President Yoon Attends Impeachment Trial... "Confidence in Liberal Democracy"

[Anchor]
President Yoon Suk Yeol attended the third hearing of the impeachment trial today. President Yoon, who got the opportunity to speak at the start of the trial, emphasized that he has firmly held the belief of liberal democracy. Let's call a reporter from the legal team at the Constitutional Court. Reporter Youngsoo Kim and reporter Lee Kyung-guk, please tell me the details.

[Reporter]
The Constitutional Court will continue to update you on this. President Yoon Suk Yeol arrived at the Constitutional Court here at around 1:10. A little before 2 o'clock, I entered the court at 1:58 with the grand jury I'm showing you now. In today's referee's court, he was wearing a navy suit and a red tie. After his arrest, President Yoon maintained his suit. It was found that he was wearing a suit even when he was in the

detention center. And if you look at what came today, it seems that you probably changed your clothes today. There was a scene where he didn't wear a tie even when he was investigated by the Senior Civil Servant Corruption Investigations Unit. If you look at the screen captured even when moving to the vehicle, I didn't wear a tie, but today I wore a red tie. As you can see on the screen, my hair looked a little tidy. Didn't President Yoon get a chance to speak before the trial began in earnest?

[Reporter]
That's right. President Yoon was seated next to lawyer Cha Ki-hwan, the respondent's representative at the front. When asked by Judge Moon Hyung-bae whether the respondent himself was present, he stood up, bowed his head, and sat down. Justice Moon later gave President Yoon a chance to speak before the full-fledged hearing began. President Yoon spoke for a little over a minute. If you look at the contents a little bit, President Yoon said, "I feel sorry for the judges for making me suffer from the impeachment case even though I am working heavily with various constitutional lawsuits." He stressed that he has been in public life since he was born in

and has firmly brought his liberal democratic beliefs. The Constitutional Court then ended its brief remarks, saying, "As the Constitutional Court exists to protect the Constitution, I hope the judges will take a good look at it, and I will let you know if it is a necessary situation or if I have any questions." Since then, the hearing date has continued, and it has also been confirmed that President Yoon shared opinions with his representative, or lawyer, several times in the process.

[Reporter]
The screen is coming out when the president of Yoon Suk Yeol arrives. The inside of the grand jury we showed you earlier was a brief time allowed for reporters before the trial proceeded in earnest. At that time, I conveyed the image of President Yoon Suk Yeol through the screen that was filmed. He was wearing a red tie. I was wearing a navy suit. Since he is now a suspect in custody, he wears a prison uniform at the detention center. I was able to check my appearance at the third hearing of the impeachment trial today after changing my clothes while wearing a prison uniform with an acceptance number on it. Isn't it meaningful that President Yoon Suk Yeol attended the impeachment trial today? Reporter Lee Kyung-guk, please explain.

[Reporter]
Today is virtually the first time President Yoon has appeared in public since declaring martial law. I've made several conversations, but they were all pre-recorded, so it was a prepared video. Therefore, it has been 49 days since December 3rd last year and last month when I came out to the public place to speak. It will be meaningful that President Yoon's appearance will be revealed for the first time today. However, the 3rd hearing date will not be broadcast live today. The screen we're showing you shows a scene where the reporters filmed some of the atmosphere for a minute or two just before the pleading day began. After this trial today, the entire video of the pleading date will be released. President Yoon's full remarks are also expected to be confirmed as a recording when the video is released.

[Reporter]
When the trial is completed today, it is expected that we will be able to receive and deliver the entire recorded process of this trial as we have done so far. As I mentioned earlier, President Yoon Suk Yeol had a brief opportunity to speak before the trial began in earnest. At that time, he expressed his position that he apologized to the judges for making them suffer from the impeachment case even though the work was heavy due to the constitutional lawsuit. He also emphasized that he firmly brought the belief of liberal democracy while working in public office. The defense is continuing, but today's witness has been adopted. Who is the witness?

[Reporter]
Since then, witnesses to be questioned have been adopted at the hearing date. If I explain it in a little bit, the National Assembly's impeachment prosecution, that is, a witness on the part of the claimant. In the case of Hong Jang-woo, former deputy director of the National Intelligence Service, Lee Jin-woo, commander of the National Capital Defense Command, Yeo In-hyeong, commander of the Special Warfare Command, Kwak Jong-geun, and Chief of the National Police Agency Jo Ji-ho, the reason for the absence was submitted as a health issue, but the court decided to put the recall on hold. Next, about the Yoon Suk Yeol, that is, the witness on the respondent's side. There is Lee Sang-min, the former Minister of Public Administration and Security. Park Chun-seop, senior presidential secretary for economic affairs, former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun and Kim Hyun-tae, 707 Special Chief of Staff, were adopted as witnesses, and the date of the interrogation has been confirmed.

And today, it was announced at the time of martial law, and there was a response from the president before the Proclamation No. 1 evidence investigation was conducted. President Yoon said, "President Kim Yong-hyun wrote the emergency martial law as it was during the former military regime, and the respondent revised several words, regarding the decree. Former Minister Kim Yong-hyun wrote it and the president said he made several corrections. He/she then reiterated that he/she had no intention of enforcement, saying that he/she wanted to stop and warn the large opposition party's abuse of impeachment and legislative congestion. In particular, he emphasized that he did not have a specific execution plan.

And the provisions contained in the decree. The ban on political activities was also explained to the effect that it was only intended to ban illegal activities by the National Assembly, not to dissolve the National Assembly, or to prevent legislative or legislative activities. And it was the biggest one. Regarding the suspicion of the arrest group, he refuted that he had never ordered the arrest of Han Dong-hoon, former leader of People's Power, Woo Won-sik, chairman of the National Assembly, and legal professionals.

[Reporter]
The remarks made by President Yoon Suk Yeol, which I mentioned earlier, that he has lived firmly with the belief of liberal democracy in his public life, were made for about a minute, and this was directly made by President Yoon Suk Yeol. What reporter Lee Kyung-guk just explained was that the agents, that is, the lawyers, made their arguments. In this regard, there may be an opportunity for President Yoon Suk Yeol to speak directly about the background of the declaration of martial law. We'll let you know when we come in. This is the time for the National Assembly to make its case in this defense. The National Assembly is emphasizing the illegality of the declaration of martial law and the proclamation by presenting media articles and minutes of the National Assembly's meeting.

The members of the State Council came to the National Assembly after the declaration of martial law and explained a lot about the lack of proper procedures for the Cabinet meeting, but they explained the minutes to the court one by one, emphasizing that there were procedural flaws. Security has also been strengthened since news broke that President Yoon Suk Yeol will attend the impeachment trial of this Constitutional Court today. What is the current situation around you, reporter Lee Kyung-guk?

[Reporter]
A lot of police forces have been deployed. In fact, it seems that the police bus completely surrounded the Constitutional Court. The reporters went around the neighborhood a little to check the site, but it's very difficult to even enter unless you reveal your affiliation and present your ID. The nearby crosswalk is also controlled so that you can't cross it, so you have to detour to the nearby sidewalk. The police are controlling it. And in the case of the National Police Agency near the Constitutional Court, the news that they are wearing protective clothing in case of an emergency was confirmed through the on-site reporters. It is believed that the police are also preparing for various situations as there was the Seoul Western District Court incident.

[Reporter]
The fact that the President of Yoon Suk Yeol will attend the impeachment trial today was also very urgent. Yesterday afternoon, the Senior Civil Servant Corruption Investigations Unit went to the Seoul Detention Center to forcibly detain and investigate President Yoon Suk Yeol. It was held until 9 p.m., but it was canceled, and the lawyers issued a statement opposing it. And he announced his position to attend the impeachment trial almost simultaneously today. President Yoon has said several times that he will attend the judgment. It's been revealed through lawyers. However, he explained that he would leave when the time is right, and that he would leave when there was no personal threat, but in fact, there was a sudden aspect from the reporters' point of view. Yesterday, I suddenly announced that I would attend.

In addition, he expressed his intention to come out not only today but also in the future. It was confirmed that the Constitutional Court also received this urgently last night. The Constitutional Court explained that there should be a consultation on security issues, but the consultation was concluded this morning. Isn't this the first time a sitting president has come to the impeachment trial?

[Reporter]
That's right. He was impeached by former Presidents Roh Moo Hyun and Park Geun Hye earlier, but he never came to the hearing himself. All agents came out and proceeded with the impeachment proceedings instead. President Yoon Suk Yeol became the first president in history to appear in person on the hearing day. As I told you earlier, President Yoon got a brief opportunity to speak for a little more than a minute. It is also expected to be seen whether the interrogation process will take place later.

[Reporter]
As you can see on the screen, President Yoon Suk Yeol attended the third hearing of his impeachment trial today and was confirmed to be wearing a navy suit and a red tie. He spoke for about a minute before the trial and pleading period began in earnest, and he said that he had firmly brought the belief of liberal democracy in his public life. After that, it seems that there will be a procedure for the judge to interrogate. So far, the Constitutional Court has delivered it. Sangam-dong studio, please come out.