South Korea’s Ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol Jailed For Life Over Insurrection

A South Korean court, on Thursday, sentenced former president Yoon Suk Yeol to life imprisonment after finding him guilty of leading an insurrection through his declaration of martial law in 2024.

Delivering judgement at the Seoul Central District Court, presiding judge Ji Gwi-yeon ruled that Yoon’s actions were aimed at crippling the National Assembly and silencing political opposition that had frustrated his administration.

“The court finds that the intention was to paralyse the assembly for a considerable period,” Judge Ji said, noting that troops were deployed to the legislature in a bid to obstruct lawmakers.

He added that the former president’s decision imposed “enormous social costs” on the country and that there was no evidence Yoon had shown remorse.

“We sentence Yoon to life imprisonment,” the judge declared.

Yoon, 65, a hardline conservative, was impeached, arrested and prosecuted after abruptly announcing martial law in a televised address in December 2024. He had claimed the move was necessary to root out “anti-state forces” allegedly operating within the National Assembly.

Under South Korean law, insurrection carries only two possible punishments: life imprisonment or death. Prosecutors had pushed for the harshest penalty, urging the court during hearings in January to sentence Yoon to death. However, with South Korea observing an unofficial moratorium on executions since 1997, a death sentence would in practice have meant life behind bars.

Former defence minister Kim Yong-hyun was also convicted for his role in the crisis and handed a 30-year prison sentence.

The verdict came amid tight security and heightened tension around the courthouse. Thousands of Yoon’s supporters gathered outside, waving placards reading “Yoon Great Again” and “Drop the charge against President Yoon.” Loud cries erupted as a blue prison bus believed to be transporting the former president entered the court complex.

Police in neon-coloured jackets were deployed in large numbers, forming barricades with buses parked nose-to-tail around the building to prevent unrest.

Yoon’s failed bid to seize power revived painful memories of military coups that destabilised South Korea between 1960 and 1980, challenging its reputation as one of Asia’s most stable democracies.

Throughout his trials, Yoon had denied any wrongdoing, insisting he acted to “safeguard freedom” and defend constitutional order against what he described as an opposition-led “legislative dictatorship.” Prosecutors, however, accused him of orchestrating an insurrection driven by a “lust for power aimed at dictatorship and long-term rule.”

The former president has been held in solitary confinement while facing multiple criminal proceedings. In addition to Thursday’s life sentence, he has already received a five-year jail term on lesser charges, while several senior officials linked to the martial law episode are also facing lengthy prison sentences.

Yoon’s dramatic declaration came late on the night of December 3, 2024, when he interrupted regular television programming to announce the suspension of civilian government and the imposition of military rule. Citing vague threats of North Korean influence and “anti-state forces,” he ordered troops onto the streets.

Martial law was lifted just six hours later after lawmakers rushed to the National Assembly to hold an emergency vote. Staff barricaded doors with office furniture to keep armed soldiers out as protests erupted nationwide.

The episode triggered turmoil in financial markets and stunned key allies, including the United States.

LEADERSHIP had reported that in a related development, Yoon’s wife, Kim Keon Hee, was sentenced in January to 20 months in prison on unrelated charges connected to bribes she accepted while serving as First Lady.

AFP