Yoon denies leading insurrection as criminal trial commences

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Yoon denies leading insurrection as criminal trial commences

Published: 14 Apr. 2025, 13:03 Updated: 14 Apr. 2025, 20:24

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol walks past supporters as he leaves the presidential residence in Hannam-dong, Yongsan District, central Seoul, on April 11. [JOONGANG ILBO]

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol denied leading an insurrection during his first court appearance on Monday, as the Seoul Central District Court held the opening session in the high-profile criminal case.

The court opened proceedings at 10 a.m. at the Seoul district court complex. After hearing opening statements from prosecutors and Yoon’s legal team, the presiding judge adjourned the session until the afternoon.

Yoon directly addressed the court, rejecting all charges. He said he had “never imagined” martial law or a coup, and insisted he acted to maintain public order during a political crisis.

Prosecutors charged the former president with leading an insurrection, alleging that he orchestrated plans to mobilize military and police forces at key state institutions during the Dec. 3 martial law last year.

The National Assembly lifted the martial law just hours later and impeached him two weeks later over allegations that he attempted to undermine constitutional order by invoking emergency powers and directing unauthorized military and police mobilization. The Constitutional Court upheld his ouster on April 4.

Prosecutors used a slideshow to argue that Yoon planned to disrupt constitutional order by deploying military and police forces to institutions including the National Assembly and the National Election Commission. They claimed that he aimed to incite insurrection under the pretext of national security.

Yoon countered that his actions were legal under constitutional emergency powers in the afternoon session, when it resumed at 2:15 p.m., insisting that his martial law proclamation was not an executable order but a “normative guideline.”

The morning hearing lasted two hours and ended before lunch.

He dismissed allegations that police could have sealed off the National Assembly as “nonsense,” and denied issuing any orders to arrest lawmakers.

Yoon directly addressed the first martial law proclamation issued under then-martial law commander Park An-soo.

Court officials block access to the underground parking entrance at the Seoul Central District Court in southern Seoul after the vehicle carrying former President Yoon Suk Yeol enters the facility for his first formal criminal trial hearing on April 14. [NEWS1]

“The proclamation wasn’t a real-world directive. It was just a norm,” Yoon said. “No one should face punishment or sanctions based on that alone.”

He also countered accusations of a police blockade at the National Assembly during the Dec. 3 martial law.

"A blockade doesn’t mean shutting down access entirely,” he said. “It means maintaining order and controlling who goes in and out.”

Yoon added that the number of officers deployed that day couldn’t have enforced a full lockdown.

“They say 300 came first, and later more than 1,000," he said. "But even with those numbers, it was impossible to fully block off the National Assembly. That’s nonsense.”

He accused opposition leaders of staging a political performance.

“Everyone who needed to go inside did,” he said. “Yet the National Assembly speaker and opposition leader climbed over the fence while posing for photos. They put on a show.”

Prosecutors claim Yoon ordered National Police Agency Commissioner General Cho Ji-ho to arrest lawmakers during the martial law enforcement, which the ousted president denied.

“Cho wasn’t in the field — he was at home,” Yoon said. “The call they’re talking about happened when Seoul Police Chief Kim Bong-sik was letting lawmakers and staff into the National Assembly.”

He also addressed accusations that he ordered former National Intelligence Service (NIS) Deputy Director Hong Jang-won to make arrests through then-counterintelligence commander Yeo In-hyung.

“That’s a complete lie,” Yoon said. “If I needed to instruct the NIS, I would’ve gone through the director. I don’t talk to deputy directors.”

He also responded to allegations related to the so-called Choi Sang-mok memo, which prosecutors say showed plans to replace the National Assembly with a new emergency legislative body.

“That makes no sense,” he said. “If I were planning an actual coup to destroy the Constitution, why would I hand a note to the finance minister during a Cabinet meeting? That’s absurd.”

Prosecutors indicted Yoon for conspiring with former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun to declare martial law without a legitimate national emergency, arguing that he tried to incite a rebellion and undermine constitutional order.

Authorities indicted Yoon on Jan. 26, making him the first sitting president in Korean history to face criminal prosecution. The Constitutional Court removed him from office on April 4.

A group of former president Yoon Suk Yeol supporters hold a rally at Seoul Central District Court in southern Seoul on April 14. [YONHAP]

A group of Yoon's supporters was still present around the Seoul Central District Court in southern Seoul, holding a rally near the main gate.

Updated, April 14: Added Yoon Suk Yeol's remarks during the afternoon session of Monday's trial

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.

BY BAE JAE-SUNG, HAN YOUNG-HYE [[email protected]]