Yoon Suk Yeol, South Korea’s former president, asserted that his brief declaration of martial law late last year was “not a coup d’état” as he appeared in court to commence a criminal trial concerning allegations of leading an insurrection.
The attempted martial law, which lasted roughly six hours before Mr. Yoon retreated in response to parliamentary opposition and public protests, plunged the nation into months of instability and resulted in the Constitutional Court removing him from the presidency this month for overstepping his constitutional powers.
After leaving his residence in a motorcade, Mr. Yoon, who has denied all accusations against him, entered the Seoul Central District Court.
At the commencement of the hearings, prosecutors presented their case, arguing that Mr. Yoon did not have the legal justification to impose martial law and accused him of attempting to incapacitate state institutions like parliament.
Mr. Yoon, who previously served as the nation’s chief prosecutor before becoming president, spent about 40 minutes in the morning refuting the prosecution’s claims.
“Martial law is not a coup d’état,” Mr. Yoon stated, emphasizing that he did not aim to disrupt the functioning of the country but believed martial law was necessary to alert citizens to the majority opposition party’s obstruction of government through the impeachment of more than 20 officials, including the head of the Board of Audit and Inspection, which he regarded as a dangerous precedent.
“This was a peaceful ‘message martial law’ to the nation… I anticipated this martial law would conclude within half a day, or a day,” Mr. Yoon explained.
He noted that, despite having communicated his intentions to former defense minister Kim Yong-hyun, military officials executing the order appeared to have misinterpreted it due to their training under different martial law protocols.
Two high-ranking military officers are expected to testify in the afternoon.
One of them, Cho Sung-hyun from the army’s capital defense command, already testified at the Constitutional Court in February that he was directed to mobilize troops to “drag” MPs out of parliament during Mr. Yoon’s martial law declaration.
Mr. Yoon refuted this claim.
The martial law declaration, which cited the imperative to eradicate “anti-state” elements, was rescinded six hours later after parliamentary staff utilized barricades and fire extinguishers to deter special operations soldiers attempting to enter parliament, where MPs voted to reject martial law.
Mr. Yoon faces a charge of insurrection, which could result in life imprisonment or even death, although South Korea has not carried out executions in decades.
The martial law declaration on December 3 shocked the South Korean public and caused disarray across various sectors, including society, the economy, and foreign policy, as noted by the Constitutional Court when it ruled to oust him from office.
This turmoil has further revealed significant social divides between conservatives and liberals and increased pressure on institutions and the military, which found itself in a dilemma regarding the enforcement of martial law.
The former president returned to his private residence on Friday from the official residence, with crowds of conservative supporters gathering to greet his motorcade.
He remains resolute and has vowed to “stand by” his supporters. The opposition Democratic Party criticized Mr. Yoon today, branding him delusional for failing to issue a sincere apology.
The country is set to hold a snap election on June 3. Questions linger as to whether Mr. Yoon may still play a role in the political landscape.
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