South Korean president impeached after protests outside parliament

SEOUL, South Korea - Parliament voted to impeach President Roh Moo-hyun on illegal electioneering and incompetence charges Friday following hours of scuffles and dramatic protests.\nRoh's presidential powers will be suspended while the matter is referred to the Constitutional Court for final approval to unseat the leader. The court has 180 days to rule.\nPrime Minister Goh Kun was to take over Roh's presidential duties. If Roh is forced to step down, a special election would be held to replace him.\nThe impeachment passed by a vote of 193 to 2, well above the 181 votes needed for the measure. Many pro-Roh lawmakers had been forcibly removed from the chamber by Assembly security and were unable to vote.\nA shoving match was sparked earlier when pro-Roh Uri Party members tried to stop Assembly Speaker Park Kwan-yong from taking the podium, the only place he can call a vote.\nAssembly security officers then moved in to begin removing lawmakers trying to block his progress. Park had warned Thursday that he might exercise his right to have security officials clear the lawmakers.\nLive television footage showed security officers dragging out screaming Uri members one by one.\nAs the voting proceeded by secret ballot, opposition members applauded and screaming Roh backers chanted that it was a "coup." Other Uri Party members broke into tears and sang the national anthem.\nSpeaker Park admonished them, saying "You asked for it."\nLawmakers loyal to Roh had planned to stall for time in the hope that the ouster motion would automatically expire on Friday evening.\nAs the clock ticked for opposition members to call a vote, rival factions cursed and shoved as they fought for the parliamentary speaker's podium.\nDozens of pro-Roh Uri Party members had camped out around the podium overnight after South Korea's two main opposition parties first tried to call a vote on Thursday but were blocked.\nA 20-minute scuffle erupted earlier Friday when about 20 opposition legislators stormed the National Assembly hall to try to remove their rivals, who were sleeping around the dais, according to Assembly officials and footage broadcast on local television stations.\nLater about 200 Roh supporters briefly exchanged punches with riot police who blocked them from marching on the National Assembly building. They chanted, "Let's block impeachment!"\nPresident Roh later apologized for the chaos and urged calm.\n"Regardless of which side is wrong, I offer my sincere apology for the situation in which the political confrontation has lead to an impeachment move against me," Roh said in a statement read by his senior public relations secretary, Lee Byong-wan. "I strongly urge all sides to regain self-control."\nThe Grand National Party rejected Roh's overture, saying in a statement that it was "not a true apology and he didn't admit his wrongdoing." The Millennium Democratic Party concurred: "The arrow has already left the bow."\nEarlier Friday, a man attempted to drive his car up the steep steps into the Assembly hall in protest. When the car stalled, the man got out and set the car on fire, said police Sgt. Lee Sun-kyun.\n"I will kill them all!" the man shouted as Assembly guards overpowered him.\nOn Thursday, a Roh supporter set himself on fire outside parliament, shouting "Let's block impeachment!"\nThe embattled leader has yet to apologize for the flash point of the impeachment attempt: accusations that he broke election laws by stumping for the Uri Party in the upcoming April 15 parliamentary campaign.\nRoh does not belong to a party, but has said he wants to join Uri.\nThe National Elections Commission ruled last week that Roh had engaged in illegal electioneering, but that the infraction was minor, not warranting criminal charges.\nOpposition lawmakers also charge Roh with incompetence at a time the country is trying to balance tensions over North Korea's nuclear programs with a fragile economic recovery.