South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun returned to work in a stronger position today after a Constitutional Court reinstated him by overturning parliament's vote to impeach him nine weeks ago.
Mr Roh had been in political limbo since the opposition-led chamber voted amid rowdy scenes on March 12th to impeach him - barely a year into his single five-year term - for breach of an election law, economic mismanagement and corruption among aides.
A majority of the court's nine judges ruled these were not grounds enough to oust Mr Roh.
"When I think of the seriousness of the trial, the political vacuum and the social costs, my heart still hurts," Mr Moon Jae-in, Roh's lawyer and former chief of staff, told reporters.
After lunch with aides today, Mr Roh returned to his office in the Blue House compound for the first time in nine weeks to draft a speech he will make on television tomorrow. He had left the grounds only a few times, including to vote in last month's parliamentary election won by the pro-Roh Uri Party.
Although politically empowered after seeing off the opposition, Mr Roh now faces the task of proving he can successfully reform the country unimpeded, with a newly compliant parliament.