South Korea Parliament impeach president Park Geun-hye

South Korean parliament on Friday, successfully voted for the impeachment of President Park Geun-Hye, a conservative who rose to power with strong support from those who revered her father, a former military dictator Park Chung-hee.

The impeachment vote against Park, the nation’s first female leader was triggered following weeks of damaging disclosures in a corruption scandal, which has paralyzed the government and resulted in the largest street protests in the nation's history. 

Park will retain her title and remain in the presidential Blue House, but her sweeping executive powers are suspended and transferred to her prime minister while the Constitutional Court considers whether her impeachment is valid or not, a process that could take up to six months before she finally leaves office, and there is even a little chance she could remain in power.

Hours after her impeachment, Ms. Park suggested that she intended to fight her impeachment, telling cabinet members that she would “calmly” prepare for the court trial but gave no hint that she would resign.

“I am gravely accepting the voices of the people and the National Assembly, and I sincerely hope that the confusion will come to a satisfactory end,” she said at the presidential Blue House in a meeting broadcast on national television.

She also apologized — for “my lack of discretion and my carelessness.”

Ms. Park was accused of allowing a shadowy confidante, to exercise remarkable influence on matters ranging from choosing top government officials to her wardrobe, and also helping her extort tens of millions of dollars from South Korean companies.