JAKARTA - The special prosecutor's team on Tuesday filed a death penalty request for former President Yoon Suk-yeol, accusing him of leading a rebellion through an unconstitutional military emergency declaration on December 3, 2024.
The special prosecutor from the team described the declaration of a military emergency as "an unprecedented and very serious act of constitutional destruction."
The death penalty demand came during the closing session of Yoon's criminal trial, marking a key moment in one of the most important cases in Korea's modern constitutional history.
Under Korea's penal code, the crime of leading a rebellion carries only three possible punishments: the death penalty, life imprisonment with forced labor, or life imprisonment without forced labor. Fixed sentences and probation sentences are not allowed.
Prosecutors argued that Yoon was ultimately responsible for attempting to undermine the constitutional order by mobilizing the armed forces and police to suppress the National Assembly. Prosecutors said the actions posed a serious threat to democratic governance and deserved the harshest punishment available under the law.
"In a state of military emergency, Yoon failed to fulfill his obligation to protect the Constitution and enhance public freedoms and fundamentally violated the security of the state and the survival of the people," said one of the prosecutors, launching The Korea Times (14/1).
"In that case, the purpose, method, and implementation of the military emergency are all anti-state activities," he added.
Furthermore, he argued, Yoon's actions were a direct attack on the constitutional government, citing the deployment of troops to enter the National Assembly to prevent lawmakers from voting to revoke the military emergency decree, an intrusion into the National Election Commission (NEC), and attempts to cut off electricity and water to the media.
The prosecutor added that Yoon showed no reflection on the constitutional damage caused by his actions, arguing that the biggest victim was the people, who had defended democratic freedoms during decades of resistance against authoritarian rule.
He further accused Yoon of declaring a state of emergency in an attempt to consolidate control over the judiciary and legislature and extend his power, describing the misuse of state resources as a very serious offense.
It is known that Yoon was charged and arrested on charges of leading a rebellion related to a military emergency. Prosecutors accused him of ordering the action even though there was no war, national emergency, or equivalent crisis, on the grounds that the move was unconstitutional and illegal.
He is also accused of directing the arrest and detention of important political figures, including President Lee Jae Myung, who was then the leader of the Korean Democratic Party, as well as Assembly Chairman Woo Won-shik, former leader of the People's Power Party Han Dong-hoon, and officials of the National Election Commission (NEC).
Seven senior military and police officials, including former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun and former National Police Agency Chief Cho Ji-ho, were charged as accomplices for allegedly playing a key role in staging the uprising. The court combined their cases and held a joint trial to discuss evidence and arguments.
Prosecutors are seeking life imprisonment for Kim, citing his involvement in carrying out and coordinating the military emergency operation. They are seeking a 30-year prison sentence for Noh Sang-won, a former senior military official, on the grounds that he played a key role in carrying out orders related to the alleged uprising.
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