South Korean prosecutors on Sunday indicted President Yoon Suk Yeol on sedition charges over his brief imposition of martial law, a criminal charge that could result in death or life imprisonment if convicted.
This is the latest blow to Yoon, who has been charged and arrested in connection with the Dec. 3 martial law decree that plunged the country into political turmoil. Separate from the criminal proceedings, the Constitutional Court is currently considering whether to formally remove Yoon as president or reinstate him.
South Korean media, including Yonhap news agency, reported that the Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office had charged Yoon in connection with the rebellion. Calls to the prosecutor's office and Yoon's lawyers went unanswered.
The conservative Yoon vehemently denies any wrongdoing, calling the martial law imposed a justified act of governance aimed at raising public awareness of the dangers of the liberal-controlled National Assembly, which hampered his agenda and put top officials on their toes. Declaring martial law, Yoon called the gathering a “den of criminals” and vowed to eliminate “shameless North Korean supporters and anti-state forces.”
After declaring martial law on December 3, Yoon sent soldiers and police officers to the assembly, but enough lawmakers managed to enter the assembly hall to unanimously reject Yoon's decree, forcing his cabinet to repeal it.
The imposition of martial law, the first of its kind in South Korea in more than 40 years, lasted only six hours. But it evoked painful memories of past dictatorial governments in the 1960s and 1980s, when military-backed rulers imposed martial law and emergency decrees to suppress opponents.
Impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was arrested and questioned by authorities on Wednesday in connection with an investigation into the uprising. He said he was only cooperating with what he called an illegal investigation to avoid violence. An estimated 3,000 police officers were dispatched to President Yoon's compound and brought wire cutters and ladders.
South Korea's constitution grants the president the power to declare martial law to maintain order during wars and other comparable emergencies, but many experts say no such conditions existed in the country when martial law was declared.
Yoon insists he had no intention of disrupting the assembly's proceedings, including the vote on his decree, and that sending in soldiers and police was intended to maintain order. However, commanders of military units dispatched to the assembly told assembly hearings or investigators that Yoon had ordered them to pull out lawmakers.