The Seoul Central District Court sentenced former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol to life in prison on Thursday, 19 February. Yoon Suk Yeol was found guilty of leading an insurrection and undermining the constitution after declaring a short-lived martial law on 3 December 2024.
Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law in December of 2024 in a televised speech, which aired late at night. Soon after his declaration, political chaos ensued, which threatened the country's democracy.
When lawmakers forced their way into parliament and voted unanimously against it, Yoon Suk Yeol was forced to reverse his decision.
The 65-year-old former president denied all charges against him and said he had presidential authority to declare martial law. He said that by doing so, he was alerting the public to curb a political gridlock and the obstruction of government by opposition parties.
Masterminding an Insurrection
In his closing statements, he said, 'The National Assembly brought about the national crisis and there was no other way but to awaken the people.'
He referred to the charge against him as 'a delusion and a work of fiction,' maintaining that he wasn't intending to subdue lawmakers and that no use of heavy weaponry or casualties occurred as a result of his declaration of martial law.
In January, prosecutors of the case said that the former president's 'unconstitutional and illegal emergency martial law undermined the function of the National Assembly and the Election Commission ... actually destroying the liberal democratic constitutional order,' per Fox News.
South Korean law places a maximum sentence of life imprisonment or death on masterminding an insurrection. Though prosecutors had initially sought the death penalty for Yoon, it was determined that the country had not carried out an execution for almost 30 years. He is expected to appeal the ruling in the coming days.
During the hearing, presiding judge Ji Gwi-yeon emphasised that Yoon's declaration of martial law was aimed towards paralysing the National Assembly for a substantial duration, and said that he attempted to arrest the opposing parties, including the Democratic Party leader, as well as Han Dong-hoo, his ruling party's leader. Ji Gwi-yeon also clarified that deploying armed soldiers to the parliament is an act of insurrection.
South Korea's former defence minister Kim Yong-hyun, who was instrumental in the insurrection, was sentenced to 30 years in prison after also being found guilty. He had admitted to giving orders to soldiers to execute martial law. Meanwhile, other former military and police officials were also sentenced to 3-18 years in prison, per CNN.
Protecting South Korea's Democracy
Yoon Suk Yeol's legal representation released a statement that said, 'You may be able to deceive the public for a while and draw cheers in the public square, but the truth will one day be revealed in the court of history. We will never yield to distortion and lies, and we will fight to the very end.'
Rebuilding Korea Party leader Cho Kuk said that Yoon had 'tried to destroy South Korea's democracy.' He said, 'There are many places where democracy is faltering. South Korea's experience shows that the power to protect and recover democracy lies within the people.'
In closing arguments, special counsel Park Eok-su said, 'The series of actions destroyed the liberal democratic constitutional order. The shock, fear, anxiety, wounds, and sense of loss suffered by the people are beyond description.'
According to the prosecutors, Yoon Suk Yeol showed no signs of remorse, which increases the risk of him declaring martial law again in future.
Originally published on IBTimes UK
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