Both sweeping immunity and overzealous prosecutions of former leaders can undermine democracy. But such prosecutions pose different risks for older democracies like the US than in younger ones.
Balancing domestic expectations and delicate relations with neighbours while trying to deal with North Korea’s race to become a nuclear power will make for a challenging five-year term.
Beyond her own personal humiliation, the ramifications of Park’s fall are already reverberating from domestic South Korean politics into the fraught geopolitics of Northeast Asia.
After weeks of mass demonstrations and a growing threat of impeachment, President Park Geun-Hye has said she is willing to resign before her term ends in February 2018.
India wants closer engagement with its neighbours as it aspires to become a global manufacturing hub. Narendra Modi’s visits to China, Mongolia and South Korea are all about promoting this agenda.