South Korean prosecutors have charged impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol over his martial law – National

South Korean prosecutors on Sunday charged ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol with sedition in connection with his brief imposition of martial law, a criminal charge that could carry the death penalty or life in prison if convicted.

It is the latest blow to Yoon, who was impeached and arrested over the Dec. 3 state of emergency decree that plunged the country into political turmoil, rattled its financial markets and damaged its international image. Separate from the criminal court proceedings, the Constitutional Court is now deciding whether to formally remove Yoon as president or reinstate him.

Yoon became the first South Korean president to be impeached while in office. He will remain in jail and will be escorted from the detention facility to a court in Seoul for hearings in the trial, which is expected to last about six months.

Yoon’s defense team upheld his sedition charge, calling it the “worst decision” by prosecutors who they say are trying to pander to political forces that want Yoon gone.

“Today’s indictment against the president will remain a disgrace in the history of South Korean prosecutors that they cannot erase,” Yoon’s defense team said in a statement. “We emphasize once again that the president’s declaration of a state of emergency can never be a rebellion.”

Prosecutors charged Yoon with leading the rebellion when he imposed martial law, according to local media. Repeated calls to prosecutors’ offices in Seoul went unanswered. Investigating authorities argued that Yoon’s imposition of a state of emergency was tantamount to sedition, as he organized riots with the purpose of undermining the constitution.

Yoon enjoys presidential immunity from most prosecutions, but that privilege does not apply to charges of sedition or treason. Under South Korean law, a leader of a rebellion can face life in prison or the death penalty.

Yoon, a conservative, has steadfastly denied any wrongdoing, calling his declaration of emergency a legitimate act of governance aimed at raising public awareness of the dangers of the liberal-controlled National Assembly, which has obstructed his agenda and impeached top officials. During his state of emergency announcement, Yoon called the assembly a “den of criminals” and vowed to eliminate “shameless North Korean followers and anti-state forces.”

After declaring martial law on December 3, Yoon sent the military and police into the assembly, but enough lawmakers still managed to enter the assembly hall to unanimously vote down Yoon’s decree, forcing his cabinet to rescind it.

The imposition of a state of emergency, the first of its kind in South Korea in more than four decades, lasted just six hours. However, it evoked painful memories of South Korea’s past dictatorial rule in the 1960s and 1980s when military-backed rulers used martial law and emergency decrees to crack down on opponents.

South Korea’s constitution gives the president the power to declare a state of emergency to maintain order in times of war and similar emergencies, but many experts say the country was not in such conditions when Yoon declared the state of emergency.

Yoon insists he had no intention of disrupting the work of the assembly, including the vote on his decree, and that the deployment of troops and police was to maintain order. But commanders of military units sent to the assembly told parliamentary hearings or investigators that Yoon ordered them to extract the lawmakers to prevent them from overturning his decree.

The investigations into Yoon have exacerbated the country’s already severe internal division, with rival protesters regularly holding rallies in central Seoul.

After a local court approved an official arrest warrant to extend Yoon’s detention on January 19, dozens of his supporters stormed the courthouse, destroying windows, doors and other property. They also attacked police officers with bricks, steel pipes and other objects. 17 police officers were injured in the violence, and the police announced that they detained 46 protesters.

Yoon has previously resisted attempts by investigating authorities to question or detain him. He was then arrested on January 15 in a major police operation in his presidential compound.

Yoon’s investigation was led by the Office of Corruption Investigation for Senior Officials, but Yoon has refused to attend CIO interrogation meetings since he was detained, saying he had no legal authority to investigate allegations of rebellion. The CIO said it could investigate Yoon’s rebellion claim because it was related to his alleged abuse of power and other allegations.

On Friday, the CIO handed over Yoon’s case to the Seoul prosecutor’s office and asked it to charge him with sedition, abuse of power and obstruction of the National Assembly. Prosecutors reportedly charged Yoon only with sedition, given that Yoon had presidential immunity from other charges.

Yoon’s defense minister, police chief and several other military commanders have already been arrested for alleged rebellion, abuse of power and other charges related to the state of emergency decree.

If the Constitutional Court rules to remove Yoon from office, a national election to choose his successor must be held within two months. Recent public surveys show that the candidates of the ruling and opposition parties are evenly matched in the possible race for the presidential election.

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