Agencies

Seoul, March 13:

An embattled South Korea government held emergency meetings and called for calm today as angry street rallies loomed to protest the country’s unprecedented presidential impeachment.

More than 12,000 supporters of impeached President Roh Moo-hyun waved candles and sang songs at a Friday night vigil near the National Assembly building. And protesters were planning to converge on the capital again tonight amid simmering resentment about what Roh’s backers called a “coup without guns.”

Police were dispatching 5,000 officers to the area to guard against violence. Public opinion polls showed nearly seven in 10 South Koreans were against the impeachment. Prime Minister Goh Kun, who assumed executive powers from President Roh, started his first full day in charge urging South Koreans to stay calm and said the government’s first priority was keeping policy unchanged.

Kim also said the government will stand by its alliance with Washington, its policies toward North Korea and its plan to send 3,000 troops to help the US-led coalition rebuild Iraq.

Goh Kun today held talks with US Homeland Security chief Tom Ridge on cooperation in the war on terror, Goh’s office said.

Earlier in the day, Defence Minister Cho Young-kil met with US Gen Leon J LaPorte, commander of US forces in South Korea, to discuss what he called a “crisis situation in the supreme military command.” Both leaders agreed not to boost their formal defense readiness conditions, citing a lack of North Korean movement, said Air Force Lt Col Deborah Bertrand, a US forces spokeswoman. The allies affirmed plans to push ahead with joint military exercises later this month that have drawn criticism from North Korea as preparations for invasion.

In an emergency National Security Council huddle today, Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon stressed the Seoul government’s commitment to a peaceful end to the nuclear crisis. In a separate snap meeting, Finance Minister Lee Hun-jai said the government’s economic plans were also unchanged and that it still intends to inject US$36 billion into the economy by month’s end. A poll taken by broadcaster KBS found 70 per cent of South Koreans thought the impeachment was wrong, while another by Yonhap news agency indicated 70 per cent believed it was unjust. A JoongAng Ilbo newspaper survey showed that 76 per cent opposed the impeachment; its margin of error was 3.7 per cent. The KBS poll’s margin of error was 3.3 per cent while Yonhap’s was 3.07 per cent.