Opponents demand arrest of ex-president Park Geun-hye, who has yet to react after impeachment following bribery scandal.
All eyes were on Seoul’s presidential Blue House on Saturday as South Koreans awaited ex-president Park Geun-hye’s reaction to her impeachment and preparations to move into her private residence.
Election authorities expressed concern over growing tensions in the lead-up to polls to elect a new president, while newspaper editorials called for an end to ongoing street protests.
A third person died on Saturday in hospital after clashes between pro-Park supporters and riot police, near the Constitutional Court which confirmed Park’s impeachment .
A spokesperson for the protesters supporting the court ruling, Choi In-sook, told Reuters news agency they were demanding the arrest of their former leader.
«We demand the arrest of Park Geun-hye and the resignation of acting president Hwang Kyo-ahn,» said Choi.
News reports said Park was watching television alone in her private presidential room on Friday when the country’s highest court announced her dismissal live on air.
REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: The day Park Geun-hye was ousted
An incredulous Park immediately phoned her aides to confirm the verdict, the Chosun Ilbo daily said.
Her aides told the newspaper she had no immediate plans to issue a statement on the court decision or her future course of action.
«The president was apparently stunned at the ruling. She looked dejected», an unidentified aide was quoted as saying. «She wants to keep to herself for a while», he added.
Park will leave the Blue House only after her private house in prosperous southern Seoul is repaired and cleaned to accommodate her and her security detail.
