South Korea’s impeached leader defends martial law bid during public appearance
Yoon Suk Yeol made his first public appearance since becoming South Korea’s first sitting president to be detained over his martial law declaration.
South Korea’s impeached president has denied he ordered the military to drag MPs out of the National Assembly to stop them from voting to reject his martial law decree last month.
Yoon Suk Yeol made the denial as he appeared for the first time before the Constitutional Court that will determine his fate.
His presence at the court was his first public appearance since becoming South Korea’s first sitting president to be detained over his short-lived declaration of martial law, which plunged the country into political turmoil.
After abruptly imposing martial law on December 3, Mr Yoon sent troops and police officers to encircle the National Assembly, but enough MPs managed to enter to vote unanimously to reject his decree, forcing Mr Yoon’s cabinet to lift the measure early the following morning.
Mr Yoon, a conservative, has since argued that his dispatch of troops was not meant to block the assembly but instead was a warning to the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, which has used its legislature majority to obstruct Mr Yoon’s agenda, undermine his budget bill and impeach some of his top officials.
The commanders of military units sent to the assembly have disagreed with Mr Yoon’s stance. Kwak Jong-keun, commander of a special forces unit, told an assembly hearing that Mr Yoon had called him directly and asked that his troops “quickly destroy the door and drag out the MPs who are inside”. Mr Kwak said he did not carry out the order.
Asked by acting Constitutional Court chief justice Moon Hyungbae whether he ordered the commanders to pull out the MPs, Mr Yoon replied that he did not do so.
Mr Yoon said the MPs could have gathered somewhere later to overturn the decree. He also argued that there would have been a popular backlash if he had tried to physically prevent an assembly vote.
“If I had obstructed (the vote), I think I wouldn’t have been able to handle the consequences,” Mr Yoon said.
Asked by Mr Moon about reports that he gave a memo on establishing an emergency legislative body to a top official before imposing martial law, Mr Yoon said he did not do so. Whether Mr Yoon plotted to launch such a body would help explain his true intentions for martial law.
Separately, law enforcement authorities are investigating whether Mr Yoon and others committed rebellion, abuse of power and other crimes in connection with the martial law decree. By law, the leader of a rebellion can face life in prison or the death penalty.
Mr Yoon earlier ignored several requests to appear for questioning and remained in his presidential residence in Seoul, though his defence minister, police chief and several top military commanders had already been arrested over their roles in the enforcement of martial law. He was eventually detained on January 15 when authorities mobilised hundreds of police and investigators near his residence.
While South Korean presidents have wide-ranging immunity from prosecution while in office, the protection does not extend to allegations of rebellion or treason.
Mr Yoon’s martial law decree has rattled South Korea’s diplomatic activities and financial markets and hurt its international image as a vibrant democracy. Mr Yoon’s subsequent defiance and the opposition’s push to oust him have also intensified South Korea’s already serious internal divide.
After a Seoul district court approved a formal arrest warrant to extend Mr Yoon’s detainment on Sunday, dozens of his supporters stormed the court building, destroying windows, doors and other property. They also attacked police officers with bricks, steel pipes and other objects. The violence left 17 police officers injured, and police said they detained 46 protesters.
