 ▲ 20일 윤석열 대통령 탄핵심판 10차 변론기일이 열린 서울 종로구 헌법재판소 대심판정. ©공동취재 |
윤석열 대통령 측이 6일 곽종근 전 특수전사령관 통화 녹취 관련해 "거대 야당이 스모킹 건이라 주장했던 증언들은 모두가 공작으로 조작된 가짜였다"며 탄핵 기각을 촉구했다.
윤 대통령 법률대리인단은 이날 오후 입장문을 통해 "대통령을 끌어내리고 조기 대선을 통해 정권을 획득하려 한 그들이 바로 국헌 문란 목적을 가진 내란 세력들"이라며 이렇게 밝혔다.
그러면서 "(곽종근이 통화했던 날은) 김현태 707특임단장이 곽 전 사령관이 더불어민주당 의원들과 리허설까지 했다고 증언한 바로 그날"이라며 "곽 전 사령관은 통화 다음 날 민주당 김병주 의원 유튜브에 출연해 '끄집어내라'는 대통령 명령을 받았다고 발언했다"고 지적했다.
또 "막후 기획자는 곽 전 사령관에게 내란죄로 엮겠다고 협박하면서 살고 싶으면 짜여진 각본대로 엉터리 양심 선언을 하라 강요했다"며 "이렇게 만들어진 곽 전 사령관 허위 진술은 탄핵 공작·내란 몰이 신호탄이 됐다"고 설명했다.
이어 "그 대가로 민주당 박범계 의원은 처벌을 두려워하는 곽 전 사령관에게 공익신고자 추천 서류를 내밀었고, 곽 전 사령관이 변호사 수임료·가족 생계를 걱정하자 부승찬 민주당 의원은 변호사까지 소개해 줬다"며 "곽 전 사령관의 궁박한 처지를 악용해 거대 야당 의원들이 회유·협박을 총동원한 대통령 끌어내리기 공작극을 펼친 것"이라고 지적했다.
더불어 홍장원 전 국정원 제1차장 관련해선 "진술, 메모도 모두 거대 야당 기획으로 만들어진 조작 산물"이라며 "대통령에 대한 내란몰이 실체가 밝혀진 이상 대통령 구속을 즉각 취소하고 헌법재판소는 대통령 탄핵심판을 기각하라"고 촉구했다.
전날 일부 언론이 곽 전 사령관이 지난해 12월 4일 비상계엄 해제 후 지인과 나눈 통화 내용을 공개한 가운데 곽 전 사령관은 당시 통화에서 "내가 살려면 나보고 양심선언 하라는데, 얘들이 다 사정은 아는데 그래도 뭐 내란죄로 엮겠단다"라고 했다.
현재 헌법재판소 윤 대통령 탄핵심판에 증거로 채택된 곽 전 사령관 증언 자체가 오염된 것으로 드러난 가운데 향후 헌재 평의 및 선고에 난항이 불가피해 보인다.
아래는 위 기사를 '구글 번역'으로 번역한 영문 기사의 [전문]입니다. '구글번역'은 이해도 높이기를 위해 노력하고 있습니다. 영문 번역에 오류가 있을 수 있음을 전제로 합니다.<*The following is [the full text] of the English article translated by 'Google Translate'. 'Google Translate' is working hard to improve understanding. It is assumed that there may be errors in the English translation.
President Yoon Seok-yeol's side: "Democratic Party's claims of testimonies are fabricated and fake...impeachment must be dismissed"
"Former Commander Kwak Jong-geun took advantage of the difficult situation to mobilize the opposition party members to persuade and threaten them in order to bring down the president... The Hong Jang-won memo was also a product of the Democratic Party's planning."
-kihong Kim reporter
On the 6th, President Yoon Seok-yeol's side called for the dismissal of the impeachment, saying, "The testimony that the huge opposition party claimed was a smoking gun was all fake, fabricated by manipulation," regarding the recorded phone call with former Special Warfare Commander Kwak Jong-geun.
President Yoon's legal team stated in a statement that afternoon, "Those who tried to overthrow the president and gain power through an early presidential election are the very same internal forces with the purpose of subverting the Constitution."
They also pointed out, "(The day Kwak Jong-geun made the phone call) was the very day that 707 Special Mission Group Chief Kim Hyun-tae testified that former Commander Kwak had a rehearsal with Democratic Party lawmakers," and "The day after the phone call, former Commander Kwak appeared on Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Byung-joo's YouTube channel and stated that he received an order from the president to 'bring him out.'"
He also explained, "The mastermind threatened to frame former Commander Kwak for sedition and forced him to make a false declaration of conscience according to the script if he wanted to live."
He added, "Former Commander Kwak's false statement, which was created in this way, became the signal for impeachment and sedition." He continued, "In return, Democratic Party lawmaker Park Beom-gye handed former Commander Kwak, who was afraid of punishment, a recommendation document for a public interest reporter, and when former Commander Kwak was worried about his attorney's fees and his family's livelihood, Democratic Party lawmaker Boo Seung-chan even introduced him to a lawyer." He pointed out, "The opposition party members took advantage of former Commander Kwak's desperate situation to stage a plot to bring down the president by mobilizing all means of persuasion and threats."
In addition, regarding former First Vice Director of the National Intelligence Service Hong Jang-won, they said, “The statements and memos are all fabricated products created by the huge opposition party’s plan,” and urged, “Now that the truth about the insurrection against the president has been revealed, the arrest of the president should be canceled immediately, and the Constitutional Court should dismiss the impeachment trial of the president.”
The previous day, some media outlets released the contents of a phone call that former Commander Kwak had with an acquaintance after martial law was lifted on December 4th of last year, and in the phone call, former Commander Kwak said, “They say I should make a declaration of conscience if I want to survive, but they know the circumstances, but they still want to link me to insurrection.”
As the testimony of former Commander Kwak, which was accepted as evidence in the Constitutional Court’s impeachment trial of President Yoon, has been revealed to be tainted, it seems inevitable that the Constitutional Court will face difficulties in its future deliberation and sentencing.
