The Constitutional Court in South Korea has pushed ahead with the start of an impeachment trial against the country’s president, despite her refusal to attend.<br /><br /> Park Geun-hye was absent from the first day of the trial on Tuesday and on Thursday the court decided to begin hearing legal arguments without her.<br /><br /> President Park Geun-hye is unlikely to appear at her impeachment trial, her lawyers said. https://t.co/0OOGOhNkwU pic.twitter.com/t2DiW6hH85— New York Times World (@nytimesworld) January 3, 2017<br /> <br /><br /> The president, whose powers have been suspended pending a ruling by the court, cannot be legally forced to attend the hearings.<br /><br /> Park is caught up in corruption allegations levelled against a close friend, Choi Soon-sil, who is facing a separate trial. The pair deny any criminal wrongdoing. <br /><br /> The chairman of parliament’s legislation and judiciary committee called on judges to remove Park from office, accusing her of violating the constitution and the law.<br /><br /> But defence lawyers hit back, saying there is a lack of evidence and legal basis for impeachment.<br /><br /> After the vote against Park in parliament on December the 9th, the Constitutional Court has until early June to decide whether to remove her from office or reinstate her powers.<br /><br /> Meanwhile, authorities in Seoul are preparing an extradition request against the daughter of Choi Soon-sil.<br /><br /> Chung Yoo-ra has been arrested in Denmark and can be held for up to four weeks pending a formal extradition process. <br /><br /> Authorities say Chung is being held over allegations of committing “economic crimes” back home.<br /><br /> The 20-year-old is reported to have appealed to a higher court against her detention.<br /><br /> Spotlight: Trial on Park Geun-hye begins as S.Korean political scene sees shakeup GH_PARK https://t.co/QAsRDVXa4H pic.twitter.com/C9uh9TJN13— China Xinhua News (XHNews) January 4, 2017<br /> <br /><br /> South Korea's Park Geun-hye refuses to testify in impeachment trial https://t.co/rrk0CR7qdk pic.twitter.com/TePVnxQJsF— Bloomberg (@business) January 4, 2017<br /> <br /><br /> The daughter of a close confidante of South Korean President Park Geun-hye was detainedhttps://t.co/Efx0ar8ADX— Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) January 3, 2017<br />
