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The lights are off at the Blue House press gallery on Nov. 28

With lawmakers in the faction of the Saenuri Party aligned with President Park Geun-hye urging Park on Nov. 28 to “resign in an orderly fashion,” many are watching to see what Park will choose to do. As the political parties move forward with Park’s impeachment proceedings, the big question is where Park will announce her political future and her plan to resign, which is the option that would allow her to maintain at least a little dignity.

On Nov. 28, the Blue House did not take an official position about the suggestion made by senior members of the pro-Park faction. Lawmakers in the pro-Park faction advised Blue House Senior Secretary of Political Affairs Hur Won-je that Park should step down, but Park’s aides in the Blue House reportedly did not engage in any official discussion of the idea. “President Park’s aides have never discussed the idea of her stepping down, and indeed this is not something that they could discuss,” said an official at the Blue House.

Meanwhile, the Blue House is holding to its current position that Park will adhere to constitutional protocol. This means that Park has no reason to step down until her illegal behavior has been clearly demonstrated. The Blue House said that it would not accept the prosecutors’ designation of Park as a criminal suspect in their announcement on Nov. 20 of their interim findings in the Choi Sun-sil investigation, which the Blue House derided as “a house of cards,” “character assassination” and “a political attack.”

Given Park‘s actions thus far, it is likely that the current standoff will continue and that she will never budge on her current position that there must be no interruption of the constitutional order. Until this point, the Blue House has fiercely resisted calls for Park to step down. It has staked everything on Park surviving a push for impeachment, daring lawmakers to resort to legal measures to bring the controversy to a quick end.

On Nov. 28, Park at last rejected the prosecutors’ request for in-person questioning on the grounds that she needed to “work on ways to deal with the crisis.” During her statement to the public on Nov. 4, Park promised to “fully cooperate in determining the guilty parties in this scandal” and declared that she would “sincerely work with the prosecutors’ investigation if necessary and even submit to an investigation by a special prosecutor,” but it has been a long time and she has gone back on her word.

On Nov. 28, Park accepted the resignation of Justice Minister Kim Hyun-woong and tabled the resignation of Blue House Senior Secretary of Civil Affairs Choi Jai-kyeong, hinting that she is gearing up for the impeachment proceedings and the special prosecutor’s investigation. She also promoted several police officers to the rank of senior superintendent general on the same day, once again showing her determination to carry out her presidential duties, such as exercising the power of appointment.

But since Park is under attack on several fronts - including the special prosecutor investigating the Choi Sun-sil scandal, the parliamentary investigation, and the impeachment - Park could ultimately change her mind. The previous day, more than 20 veteran politicians and social figures (including a former speaker of the National Assembly, a former prime minister and religious leaders) called on Park to step down soon: “President Park must resign by April of next year to fill the leadership vacuum in the government.”

“The mood at the Blue House has apparently changed somewhat since the meeting of doyens. If President Park concludes that she cannot prevent the motion for impeachment from passing, she might step down of her own accord,” said a source in the Saenuri Party. With her back against the wall, the source said, Park might choose an honorable way out by reducing her term in office through a constitutional amendment.

An official at the Blue House did not rule out the possibility of Park taking the advice of doyens the previous day to step down before April: “The doyens have made their recommendation, and we are listening carefully to various opinions.”

By Choi Hye-jung, staff reporter

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