(MENAFN- The Peninsula) AFP
Seoul: South Korea's constitutional court on Tuesday rejected parliament's impeachment of a minister over last year's tragic crowd crush that killed more than 150 people, allowing him to immediately return to work.
Interior Minister Lee Sang-min was pressured to resign following heavy criticism over his handling of the October 29, 2022 disaster, when scores of young partygoers, mostly women in their 20s, were killed in Seoul's popular Itaewon nightlife area.
Lee was suspended from official duty in February following an impeachment motion which passed 179-109 along party lines in the opposition-controlled parliament.
But the country's constitutional court on Tuesday ruled against the parliamentary vote, saying Lee's actions did not amount to grounds for impeachment. The decision was unanimous, the court said.
Although "the best judgement and response were not made" by Lee, it was "difficult to regard it as a violation of the constitutional provisions on the protection of the basic rights of the people," the court said in a statement.
February's impeachment motion had said Lee's immediate response to the crowd crush had contributed to a delayed and poorly coordinated deployment of emergency responders.
It also criticised his claim immediately after the disaster that more fire and police personnel would not have avoided the disaster. Lee later apologised for his comments.
The constitutional court acknowledged that Lee's comments were inappropriate, saying they "brought great disappointment not only to the victims and bereaved families, but also to the general public who believed that the government would do its best to protect the lives and safety of the people."
However, the comments did not constitute grounds for impeachment, it added.
The court also said it was difficult to solely attribute the responsibility to Lee, as the incident "was not caused by a single cause or by a specific person".
Bereaved families had sent letters to the constitutional court prior to Tuesday's ruling, asking the judges to rule in favour of the parliamentary vote.
"The Ministry of Interior is an agency that is obligated to prioritise people's safety," one family member wrote.
"If its head is not impeached this time and returns to his post, not only our bereaved families, but also the general public, will lose faith and hope for the safety of this country."
South Korea's rapid transformation to become Asia's fourth-largest economy and a global cultural powerhouse is a source of national pride.
But a series of preventable disasters -- such as last year's Seoul crowd crush and the 2014 Sewol ferry sinking that killed 304 people -- has shaken public confidence in authorities.
Lee returned to work immediately on Tuesday.