Home > National > Politics

Prime Minister Han says he opposed martial law, apologizes for failing to stop it

Published: 11 Dec. 2024, 14:09

LEE SOO-JUNG
[email protected]

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo walks out of a chamber at the National Assembly in western Seoul on Tuesday. [NEWS1]

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said on Wednesday that he consistently opposed the imposition of martial law before President Yoon Suk Yeol's declaration and now regrets his failure to stop it.

Han said he feels “a heavy responsibility for the current situation Koreans face and the entire process that led to it” and apologized for causing “every Korean citizen pain and chaos.”

“I am reproaching myself for failing to prevent the martial law declaration although I persistently objected to it on the night of Dec. 3,” Han wrote in his statement.

Han stressed that stable state management, per the law and the Constitution, is of utmost importance in Korea's unprecedentedly critical situation.

Han promised to fulfill his duty until the end and bear all responsibility without excuses.

Police on Tuesday summoned Han as a suspect in the martial law imposition, including other ministers present at a Cabinet meeting where President Yoon informed them of the martial law decree on Dec. 3.

BY LEE SOO-JUNG [[email protected]]