South Korean lawmakers vote to lift opposition leader’s immunity against arrest

By KIM TONG-HYUNG
Associated Press

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — In a surprise outcome, South Korea’s opposition-controlled parliament has voted to pass a motion submitted by the government that allows for the potential arrest of the country’s leading opposition figure, Lee Jae-myung, who faces a widening investigation over corruption allegations. Lawmakers voted 149-136 on Thursday in favor of lifting Lee’s immunity to arrest, which allows a Seoul court to set up a hearing on prosecutors’ request for an arrest warrant for Lee. It was not immediately clear when the hearing would take place or how likely it would be that the court would grant an arrest warrant for Lee after he was hospitalized on Monday amid a weekslong hunger strike in protest of conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol’s policies.