A South Korean court has sentenced former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo to 23 years in prison after finding him guilty on insurrection charges related to disgraced ex-President Yoon Suk-yeol’s short-lived declaration of martial law.
Han was found guilty on Wednesday of abetting Yoon’s brief imposition of martial law and for failing to hold a lawful cabinet meeting, as required by South Korean law, after the decree to mobilise the military was ordered by the then-president in December 2024.
Han”disregarded his duty and responsibility as prime minister until the very end”, said Judge Lee Jin-gwan, of the Seoul Central District Court.
“As a result of the defendant’s actions, South Korea was in danger of returning to the dark past when the basic rights and liberal democratic order of the people were violated, potentially preventing them from escaping from the quagmire of dictatorship for a long time,” the judge said.
The court ordered Han to be detained after sentencing, citing concerns about the possible destruction of evidence.
Han, 76, is the first member of Yoon’s cabinet to be found guilty and sentenced to jail in relation to the martial law declaration.
The former prime minister denied the charges against him, saying he had no prior knowledge of Yoon’s plan to impose military rule.
Credit: aljazeera.com
