An independent prosecutor urged the imposition of the death penalty on former South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol for charges of rebellion stemming from his brief declaration of martial law in December 2024. Yoon, removed from office in April and currently incarcerated, is facing multiple trials for various criminal offenses related to the martial law incident and other controversies during his tenure, with the rebellion allegations being the most severe.
The prosecution team led by Cho Eun-suk urged the Seoul Central District Court to convict Yoon of treason, labeling his actions as “anti-state activities” and a “self-coup.” They claimed that Yoon sought to extend his rule by subverting the constitutional framework of governance. Responding to investigations on the rebellion charges, Yoon criticized them as “frantic” and accused them of manipulation and distortion.
Yoon, a conservative, reiterated that his decree was an effort to raise public awareness of what he perceived as the threat posed by the liberal Democratic Party, which obstructed his agenda with its legislative majority. He argued that the use of emergency presidential powers should not be equated with rebellion. The court is anticipated to reach a verdict in February, with experts predicting a life sentence rather than the death penalty, as South Korea has not carried out executions since 1997, and capital punishment has been rare in recent years.
Yoon is the first former South Korean president to potentially face the death penalty post-presidency since Chun Doo-hwan, who was sentenced to death in 1996 for leading a military coup in 1979. Chun’s sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment and he was eventually pardoned.
Yoon’s martial law declaration, the first in over four decades, involved deploying armed forces in Seoul to encircle the National Assembly and election offices. While no major injuries were reported, the incident evoked memories of past dictatorships. Thousands protested at the National Assembly on the night of the declaration, leading to its rejection by lawmakers.
Seen as a political miscalculation, Yoon’s actions resulted in his impeachment and subsequent removal from office by the Constitutional Court. This event led to political instability, disrupting diplomacy and financial markets in South Korea. Lee Jae Myung, who spearheaded Yoon’s impeachment, won a snap election and assumed the presidency. Subsequently, independent counsels were appointed to investigate allegations involving Yoon and his associates.
The president’s office expressed confidence in the judiciary to uphold the law and public expectations in ruling on Yoon’s case. Speculation about Yoon’s motives for declaring martial law to shield his wife from potential corruption probes was dispelled by the independent counsel’s findings, which indicated a calculated effort by Yoon to eliminate political rivals and consolidate power through martial law.