South Korea’s impeached president Yoon Suk Yeol appeared in a Seoul court on Monday for the begining of his criminal trial for declaring martial law.
Yoon plunged the nation into chaos when he declared martial law in December. He was officially removed from office by the Constitutional Court on April 4 and will hold an to fill the power vacuum.
Now, in his criminal trial, he faces the charge of insurrection which is punishable by life imprisonment or the death penalty, although South Korea has not executed anyone in decades.
Yoon’s declaration of martial law was brought to an end after six hours when parliamentarians voted to overturn it and stopped special operations soldiers from entering the building.
Yoon defends martial law declaration
Prosecutors accused Yoon of including the parliament, using his authority as president to declare martial law for personal gains.
They presented evidence, including Yoon’s plan to deploy the military to the parliament, with orders to break windows and cut the power for .
Yoon, who was South Korea’s chief prosecutor before his presidency, defended himself along with his legal team in the trial and rejected all allegations.
“Martial law is not a coup d’etat,” Yoon said, adding he the country as he expected to end it in “half a day.”
He also argued that it was a “peaceful message” to the nation to alert the people of the opposition’s intentions against the government.
“To frame an event that lasted only a few hours was non-violent, and immediately accepted the dissolution request from the National Assembly as insurrection… strikes me as legally unfounded,” Yoon added.
The court heard testimonies from two senior military officials, including Cho Sung-hyun, the officer who already testified at the Constitutional Court in February.
He told the court about instructions from top commanders to “drag out the lawmakers” from the parliament.
How long will Yoon’s criminal trial last?
According to experts, Yoon’s criminal trial is expected to be lengthy.
“The first verdict is likely to be delivered around August, but the case involves around 70,000 pages of evidence and numerous witnesses. So if deemed necessary by the court, the trial may be extended,” lawyer Min Kyoung-sic told the AFP news agency.
If convicted, Yoon faces a . The death penalty, although legally possible in South Korea, remains unlikely. It has not been carried out in South Korea since the late 1990s.
South Korea will hold a snap election on June 3 to restore the constitutional order in the country. According to South Korea’s law, an election must be held to replace an ousted president within 60 days.
The snap elections are critical to restoring the political stability of Asia’s fourth-largest economy during an ongoing global trade war and .
Edited by: Zac Crellin
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