Former President Yoon gets life for insurrection

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol was sentenced to life imprisonment on charges of leading an insurrection. The ruling came 443 days after his Dec. 3, 2024, declaration of martial law and marked the court’s first determination that the measure was illegal and constituted an insurrection for which he bore responsibility as its ringleader.

Criminal Division 25 of the Seoul Central District Court, presided over by Judge Ji Gui-yeon, convicted Yoon of leading an insurrection and abuse of power. “The defendant, Yoon Suk Yeol, is sentenced to life imprisonment,” the court said Wednesday. Courtroom 417, where the verdict was delivered, is the same courtroom in which former President Chun Doo-hwan was sentenced to death in his initial trial and later to life imprisonment on appeal in 1996 for leading an insurrection.

The three-judge panel concluded that the Dec. 3 martial law declaration amounted to an insurrection intended to undermine the constitutional order. “Our Constitution and the Martial Law Act do not permit emergency martial law to infringe upon the authority of the National Assembly or the essential powers of the executive and judiciary,” the court said. “If martial law is declared for such purposes, then even if it appears to be an exercise of constitutional authority, the crime of insurrection with intent to disrupt the constitutional order may be established.”

The court firmly rejected Yoon’s argument that the declaration was justified by what he described as excessive impeachment motions by the opposition and budget cuts that crippled the government, which he likened to actions by anti-state forces. The judges said such assertions amounted to motives or grievances, not a lawful objective. “One cannot steal a candle simply because one intends to read the Bible,” the panel said.

The judges identified the deployment of military forces to the National Assembly as the gravest illegality arising from the Dec. 3 martial law. “The declaration of martial law in this case, the issuance of proclamations, the blockade of the National Assembly, the formation and operation of teams to arrest politicians, the occupation of the National Election Commission and removal of its servers, and attempts to detain staff, taken together, constitute acts of riot,” the court said. “The core of this case lies in sending the military to the National Assembly.”

The court imposed a life sentence on Yoon for leading an insurrection. In explaining the punishment, the panel said the Dec. 3 declaration of martial law “fundamentally undermined the core values of democracy, making the defendant highly blameworthy.” It added that the move compromised the political neutrality of the military and police, damaged South Korea’s international standing and credibility, and intensified extreme political polarization, inflicting incalculable harm.

Kim Yong-hyun, the former defense minister who took part in the Dec. 3 martial law declaration, was sentenced to 30 years in prison. The court said he had encouraged what it described as Yoon’s “irrational decision.” Former National Police Agency Commissioner Cho Ji-ho, former Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency Commissioner Kim Bong-sik, former Defense Intelligence Command chief Noh Sang-won and former National Assembly security chief Mok Hyun-tae were each convicted of playing key roles in the insurrection, including involvement in the blockade of the National Assembly.

Immediately after the sentencing, Yoon’s legal team lodged a strong objection. “If the ruling merely follows a conclusion predetermined by the special counsel, why was this trial held?” the lawyers said. They added that they were reconsidering whether to file an appeal or continue participating in the criminal proceedings.


Won-Mo Yu onemore@donga.com