QUOTE
Extraordinary scenes in Seoul
Politicians push, shove and block each other
Friday, March 12, 2004 Posted: 0402 GMT (1202 HKT)
SEOUL, South Korea -- Extraordinary scenes unfolded in Seoul on Friday, as politicians physically battled each other in the country's first impeachment bid since the nation was founded in 1948.
Politicians scuffled both inside and outside parliament, shoving each other around and blocking the National Assembly speaker from taking the podium in a bid to stop the unprecedented vote.
Lawmakers loyal to President Roh Moo-hyun wanted to stymie the debate and stall for time in the hope that the ouster motion would automatically expire via a sunset clause on Friday evening.
But as the clock ticked for opposition members to call a vote, rival factions cursed and shoved as they fought for the speaker's podium.
Dozens of pro-Roh Uri Party members had camped out around the podium overnight after South Korea's two main opposition parties tried to call a vote on Thursday.
A 20-minute scuffle erupted earlier Friday when about 20 opposition legislators stormed the National Assembly hall to try to remove their rivals, who were sleeping around the dais, according to local media reports.
Lawmakers belonging to the opposition Grand National and Millennium Democratic parties tugged at Chung Se-kyun, a member of the pro-Roh Uri Party, to try to dislodge him from the speaker's seat.
Chung held fast, while another lawmaker supporting Roh jumped onto the speaker's podium desk and shouted at the intruders, the Associated Press reported.
Later about 200 Roh supporters briefly exchanged punches with riot police, who blocked them from marching on the National Assembly building.
They chanted, "Let's block impeachment!"
'I will kill them all'
Earlier Friday, a man attempted to drive his car up the steep steps into the assembly hall in protest.
When the car stalled, the man got out and set the car on fire, police Sgt. Lee Sun-kyun, told AP.
"I will kill them all!" the man shouted as assembly guards overpowered him.
In a dramatic protest the day before, a Roh supporter set himself on fire outside parliament, shouting "Let's block impeachment!"
That ended a day of street protests for and against the impeachment motion, as Roh supporters stood behind their president, denouncing lawmakers for seeking to remove him from office.
On the other side, demonstrators called for Roh's resignation.
In Seoul, opinions varied on the impeachment. But almost everyone agreed they wanted the fighting to end.
"Lawmakers should be working together to resolve this problem," said one office worker.
"Impeachment is not the answer."
One young student said she was troubled by so much chaos, especially when the economy seems to be so bad.
The National Elections Commission ruled last week that Roh had engaged in illegal electioneering, but that the infraction was minor, not warranting criminal charges.
Opposition lawmakers also charge Roh with incompetence at a time the country is trying to balance tensions over North Korea's nuclear programs with a fragile economic recovery.
-- CNN's Seoul Correspondent Sohn Jie-ae and The Associated Press contributed to this report
Politicians push, shove and block each other
Friday, March 12, 2004 Posted: 0402 GMT (1202 HKT)
SEOUL, South Korea -- Extraordinary scenes unfolded in Seoul on Friday, as politicians physically battled each other in the country's first impeachment bid since the nation was founded in 1948.
Politicians scuffled both inside and outside parliament, shoving each other around and blocking the National Assembly speaker from taking the podium in a bid to stop the unprecedented vote.
Lawmakers loyal to President Roh Moo-hyun wanted to stymie the debate and stall for time in the hope that the ouster motion would automatically expire via a sunset clause on Friday evening.
But as the clock ticked for opposition members to call a vote, rival factions cursed and shoved as they fought for the speaker's podium.
Dozens of pro-Roh Uri Party members had camped out around the podium overnight after South Korea's two main opposition parties tried to call a vote on Thursday.
A 20-minute scuffle erupted earlier Friday when about 20 opposition legislators stormed the National Assembly hall to try to remove their rivals, who were sleeping around the dais, according to local media reports.
Lawmakers belonging to the opposition Grand National and Millennium Democratic parties tugged at Chung Se-kyun, a member of the pro-Roh Uri Party, to try to dislodge him from the speaker's seat.
Chung held fast, while another lawmaker supporting Roh jumped onto the speaker's podium desk and shouted at the intruders, the Associated Press reported.
Later about 200 Roh supporters briefly exchanged punches with riot police, who blocked them from marching on the National Assembly building.
They chanted, "Let's block impeachment!"
'I will kill them all'
Earlier Friday, a man attempted to drive his car up the steep steps into the assembly hall in protest.
When the car stalled, the man got out and set the car on fire, police Sgt. Lee Sun-kyun, told AP.
"I will kill them all!" the man shouted as assembly guards overpowered him.
In a dramatic protest the day before, a Roh supporter set himself on fire outside parliament, shouting "Let's block impeachment!"
That ended a day of street protests for and against the impeachment motion, as Roh supporters stood behind their president, denouncing lawmakers for seeking to remove him from office.
On the other side, demonstrators called for Roh's resignation.
In Seoul, opinions varied on the impeachment. But almost everyone agreed they wanted the fighting to end.
"Lawmakers should be working together to resolve this problem," said one office worker.
"Impeachment is not the answer."
One young student said she was troubled by so much chaos, especially when the economy seems to be so bad.
The National Elections Commission ruled last week that Roh had engaged in illegal electioneering, but that the infraction was minor, not warranting criminal charges.
Opposition lawmakers also charge Roh with incompetence at a time the country is trying to balance tensions over North Korea's nuclear programs with a fragile economic recovery.
-- CNN's Seoul Correspondent Sohn Jie-ae and The Associated Press contributed to this report
