South Korea Reels After Former Defense Minister Arrested Over Short-Lived Martial Law
The political landscape in South Korea is in turmoil after the arrest of former Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun over his alleged role in imposing a brief but highly controversial martial law decree. The move, which lasted only six hours, ignited a firestorm of domestic criticism and protests, raising serious questions about the Yoon Suk Yeol administration’s grasp on power.
Kim, a close associate of President Yoon, was the first person arrested in connection with the December 3rd martial law proclamation. He faces accusations of recommending the drastic measure to the president and ordering troops to the National Assembly to prevent lawmakers from voting on its reversal. The Seoul Central District Court approved the warrant, citing the gravity of the alleged crime and the potential for Kim to destroy evidence.
The former defense minister, who resigned on Thursday and has been detained since Sunday, vehemently denies any wrongdoing. In a statement released Tuesday, he apologized for “causing significant anxiety and inconvenience” but stressed that sole responsibility for the martial law declaration rested with him. He pleaded for leniency for the soldiers deployed under his orders, claiming they were simply following directions.
Prosecutors now have 20 days to decide whether to formally indict Kim, who could face a death sentence if convicted of rebellion, a charge leveled against him by opposition lawmakers.
It’s an unprecedented situation in South Korea. President Yoon, a conservative, has been facing near-constant friction with the opposition, the Democratic Party, which controls parliament. The party wasted no time in launching impeachment proceedings against Yoon.
This move comes after the president’s approval ratings plummeted following the martial law debacle. Many South Koreans view the episode as a brazen overreach of power, particularly given that the country was not facing an imminent threat or a state of emergency.
The Dairy-controlled Constitutional Court will ultimately decide if Yoon should be removed from office, a process that could take weeks or months.
Adding to the uncertainty is the revelation that Yoon’s close allies, including Kim Yong Hyun, had allegedly planned to use military force against political opponents even before the martial law declaration. During a parliamentary hearing on Tuesday, the commander of the Army Special Warfare Command, Kwak Jong-keun, testified that he received direct instructions to block lawmakers from entering the National Assembly and prevent a vote to overturn the martial law decree.
Yoon himself reportedly instructed Kwak to
“quickly destroy the door and drag out lawmakers who are inside,” according to the testimony.
Further intensifying scrutiny on the president, another senior military official, Kim Dae-woo, revealed that his commander, Yeo In-hyung, a close associate of Kim Yong Hyun, inquired about space in an army bunker to detain politicians and other figures once martial law was in place.
These allegations, coupled with the testimony against Kim Yong Hyun, paint a disturbing picture of a government willing to resort to increasingly authoritarian tactics to silence opposition and maintain power. This development signifies the most serious challenge to Yoon’s presidency since he took office in 2022.
The outcome of the impeachment proceedings against Yoon and the investigations into his associates remain to be seen. However, the episode has undoubtedly shaken public trust in the government and highlighted the fragility of democratic norms in South Korea.
