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South Korea Elections
A South Korean court sentenced former President Yoon Suk Yeol to five years in prison Friday on some charges related to his imposition of martial law. The verdict is the first against Yoon in the eight criminal trials over the decree he issued in late 2024 and other allegations. The most significant charge against him alleges that he led a rebellion in connection with his martial law enforcement and it carries a potential death penalty. The Seoul Central District Court in the case decided Friday sentenced him for other charges like his defiance of authorities' attempts to detain him. Yoon hasn't immediately publicly responded to the ruling. But when an independent counsel earlier demanded a 10-year prison term for Yoon over those charges, Yoon's defense team accused them of being politically driven and lacking legal grounds to demand such an excessive sentence. Yoon has been impeached, arrested and dismissed as president after his short-lived imposition of martial law in December
An independent counsel on Tuesday demanded the death sentence for former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on rebellion charges in connection with his short-lived imposition of martial law in December 2024. Yoon, who was removed from office last April and is in jail, faces eight trials over various criminal charges related to his martial law debacle and other scandals that flared during his time in office. Charges that he directed a rebellion are the most significant ones. Independent counsel Cho Eun-suk's team requested the Seoul Central District Court to sentence Yoon to death, describing his decree as anti-state activities and a self-coup. Cho's team alleged that Yoon aimed to prolong his rule by neutralising the constitutional structure of state governance systems. Speaking at the same court room later, Yoon slammed investigations on his rebellion charges, saying they've been frenzied" and that they have involved manipulation and distortion. Yoon, a conservative, also ...
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Monday commuted to Cheong Wa Dae, the country's traditional presidential palace, for the first time since taking office in June, more than three years after his ousted predecessor Yoon Suk Yeol moved the presidential office to the Defense Ministry compound. It was the first time a president had commuted to Cheong Wa Dae since May 9, 2022, the final day of former President Moon Jae-in's term, before Yoon began his presidency working out of a converted Defense Ministry building. Lee, who won a snap presidential election in June following Yoon's removal over a brief declaration of martial law in December 2024, spent weeks relocating the presidential office back to Cheong Wa Dae, also known as the Blue House, as he seeks to erase the legacy of his now-jailed predecessor. Cheong Wa Dae is nestled on the lower slopes of a mountain in northern Seoul, occupying about 250,000 square meters (62 acres) behind the historic Gyeongbokgung Palace. The site,
South Korea's ousted conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol plotted for over a year to impose martial law to eliminate his political rivals and monopolise power, investigators concluded on Monday. Yoon's martial law decree in December 2024 lasted only several hours and resulted in his rapid downfall. Independent counsel Cho Eun-suk, who announced the six-month probe's result, also accused the former president and his military allies of ordering operations against North Korea, in a deliberate bid to stoke tensions and justify his plans to declare martial law. Despite the lack of a serious response from North Korea, Cho said that Yoon declared martial law by branding the liberal-controlled legislature as anti-state forces that must be urgently removed. There was no immediate reaction from Yoon, who is in jail while standing trials for high-stakes rebellion charges. Yoon has steadfastly maintained that his martial law declaration was a desperate attempt to draw public support for his fi
South Korea's ousted conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol was indicted Saturday on additional criminal charges related to his ill-fated imposition of martial law, about three months after he was formally thrown out of office. Yoon's additional indictments mean he will remain in jail for up to six months as he faces a trial at the Seoul Central District Court on his Dec 3 martial law declaration that plunged South Korea into huge political turmoil. Yoon was sent back to prison last week after the Seoul court approved his arrest warrant requested by a team of investigators headed by independent counsel Cho Eun-suk. Cho's team indicted Yoon on abuse of power that obstructed the rights of some of his Cabinet members. The charge was imposed because Yoon summoned only select Cabinet members to approve his emergency martial law when South Korean law requires approval of all Cabinet members for such a measure, Park Ji-young, a senior investigator at Cho's team, told a briefing. Park said Yo
Disgraced former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol arrived in court Wednesday for a hearing to review a special prosecutor's request for his arrest on charges related to his brief imposition of martial law in December. Yoon, who was ousted in April after the Constitutional Court upheld his impeachment, was released from prison in March after the Seoul Central District Court overturned his January arrest, allowing him to stand trial for rebellion without being detained. Arriving in a black van with his lawyers, Yoon did not respond to questions before entering the court in Seoul. His criminal case is being handled by a team of investigators under a special prosecutor, Cho Eun-suk, who are pursuing additional charges over Yoon's authoritarian push, including abuse of power, falsifying official documents and obstructing official duties. Cho's team said they view Yoon as a potential threat to destroy evidence. They questioned him twice before submitting a request for his arrest warr
South Korea's liberal-led legislature on Thursday passed bills to launch special investigations into former President Yoon Suk Yeol's short-lived imposition of martial law in December and criminal allegations against his wife, targeting the ousted conservative a day after his liberal successor took office. The bills were previously vetoed by Yoon and South Korea's caretaker government after his December 14 impeachment over the martial law debacle. The bills are expected to be signed by new President Lee Jae-myung, a Democrat who won Tuesday's snap election triggered by Yoon's formal removal from office in April.
Millions of South Koreans are voting Tuesday for a new president in a snap election triggered by the ouster of Yoon Suk Yeol, a conservative who now faces an explosive trial on rebellion charges over his short-lived imposition of martial law in December. Pre-election surveys suggested Yoon's liberal archrival, Lee Jae-myung, appeared headed for an easy win, riding on deep public frustration over the conservatives in the wake of Yoon's martial law debacle. The main conservative candidate, Kim Moon Soo, has struggled to win over moderate, swing voters as his People Power Party remains in a quagmire of internal feuding over how to view Yoon's actions. This election serves as another defining moment in the country's resilient democracy, but observers worry a domestic divide worsened by Yoon is far from over and could pose a big political burden on the new president. The past six months saw large crowds of people rallying in the streets to either denounce or support Yoon, while a ...
After months of political turmoil, South Korea will elect a new president this week to succeed conservative Yoon Suk Yeol, who was ousted over his brief but shocking imposition of martial law. Surveys suggested liberal Lee Jae-myung is heavily favored to win Tuesday's snap election, riding on a wave of public disappointment of Yoon's martial law debacle in December. The main conservative candidate, Kim Moon Soo, wants a come-from-behind victory, but observers say his refusal to directly criticise Yoon made it difficult for him to narrow the gap with Lee. The winner will be sworn in as president on Wednesday without the typical two-month transition period. The new leader faces the urgent tasks of trying to heal the deep domestic divide over Yoon's action as well as focusing on US President Donald Trump's America-first policy and North Korea's advancing nuclear programme. Who is running for the presidency? Lee, who represents the main liberal Democratic Party, is the favourite to win
South Korea's embattled conservative party has taken the unprecedented step of nullifying its primary and replacing presidential candidate Kim Moon Soo with former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo just one week after Kim's selection, deepening internal turmoil ahead of the June 3 presidential by-election. Saturday's move by the People Power Party's leadership, which Kim denounced as an overnight political coup, underscores the desperation and disarray within the party following the ouster of former President Yoon Suk Yeol over his ill-fated attempt to impose martial law in December. Kim, a staunch conservative and former labour minister under Yoon, was named the PPP's presidential candidate on May 3 after winning 56.3% of the primary vote, defeating a reformist rival who had criticised Yoon's martial law. But the PPP's leadership, dominated by Yoon loyalists, has spent the past week pressuring Kim to step aside and back Han, whom they believe stands a stronger chance against liberal ...
Former Labour Minister Kim Moon Soo won the presidential nomination of South Korea's main conservative party, facing an uphill battle against liberal front-runner Lee Jae-myung for the June 3 election. Observers say Kim will likely try to align with other conservative forces, such as former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, to prevent a split in conservative votes in a bid to boost prospects for a conservative win against Lee. In a party primary that ended Saturday, Kim won 56.5 per cent of the votes cast, beating his sole competitor, Han Dong-hun, the party said in a televised announcement. Other contenders have been eliminated in earlier rounds. I'll form a strong alliance with anyone to prevent a rule by Lee Jae-myung and his Democratic Party forces. I'll push for that in a procedure and method that our people and members accept, and I'll ultimately win, Kim said in his victory speech. Kim, 73, served as a governor of South Korea's most populous Gyeonggi province and a member of the
Former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol left the presidential residence in Seoul on Friday for his private home, a week after the Constitutional Court removed him from office over his ill-fated imposition of martial law in December. In recent days, moving trucks were seen driving in and out of the walled presidential compound in the Hannam-dong district, the site of a massive law enforcement operation in January that led to Yoon's detainment. Yoon, who is facing a criminal trial on rebellion charges, was released from custody in March after a Seoul court canceled his arrest. Yoon and his wife, Kim Keon Hee, along with their 11 dogs and cats, are returning to their private apartment in affluent southern Seoul. As his black van arrived at the gate of the presidential compound, Yoon stepped out, smiling and waving to his supporters, shaking hands and embracing dozens of them, before getting back into the vehicle and leaving the site. Ahead of his arrival, dozens of both supporters
Yoon Suk Yeol's political rise was fast: the former star prosecutor clinched South Korea's presidency only a year after he entered politics. But his downfall was even faster: The Constitutional Court removed him from office on Friday, about four months after he made a deeply baffling decision to declare martial law and send troops to Seoul's streets. Yoon's style highly assertive and strong-willed, but often uncompromising and inflexible worked for a prosecutor standing up to higher-ups, but not for a president forced to work with an opposition-dominated legislature on an array of contentious issues. Yoon, 64, a conservative, said his martial law decree was a desperate attempt to call on public support for his fight against anti-state liberal rivals who used their parliamentary majority to obstruct his agenda and impeach top officials. But many observers say the stunt was political suicide, as the liberal opposition-controlled parliament quickly struck down Yoon's decree before ..