Former President Yoon Urges Halt to Military Investigations

Former President Yoon Seok-yeol, who is currently boycotting judicial proceedings, called on Sept. 3 for the suspension of investigations and trials targeting military personnel involved in the martial law declaration. Although Yoon insisted that responsibility should rest with him as the former commander-in-chief, he has refused to attend any special prosecutor investigations or court hearings since his re-arrest on July 10.

According to Yoon’s legal team, during a Sept. 2 meeting with lawyer Song Jin-ho, the former president said, “Stop persecuting the military and soldiers. Place all responsibility on me, as I was the commander-in-chief, and suspend investigations and trials of military personnel, dropping charges against those already prosecuted.” He also said, “I pray every day for the soldiers involved in the martial law declaration and their families.” Song told reporters that Yoon continually expresses outrage at anti-state forces who are portraying soldiers as members of a rebellion.

Yoon’s 98-character statement drew criticism from legal circles, with several calling it “irresponsible.” During the Constitutional Court impeachment proceedings, Yoon similarly deflected responsibility. When former Army Special Warfare Command chief Kwak Jong-geun testified that he had received instructions to “break into the National Assembly quickly and remove those inside,” Yoon responded that if someone in public office or an organized institution receives an order that is difficult to carry out, they should declare it ‘practically impossible,' effectively shifting responsibility away from himself.

Critics suggested that Yoon’s remark about praying for soldiers and their families may be aimed at gaining support from conservative Protestant groups critical of special prosecutors' investigation. Yoon, currently detained at the Seoul Detention Center, previously resisted the execution of the special prosecutor’s arrest warrant on Aug. 7, shouting, “I’ve been a prosecutor for 27 years. If this were legal, would I not comply voluntarily?"


이기욱 기자 71wook@donga.com