Two former senior aides to South Korea’s ex-president Yoon Suk-yeol have testified in court that Yoon pressed ahead with a plan to impose martial law despite objections from cabinet members and top officials, with their statements offering a rare insight into the events that led to the short-lived decree.
Testimony by former National Security Office chief Shin Won-sik and former presidential chief of staff Chung Jin-suk on Monday shed new light on Yoon’s thinking behind his martial law declaration on the night of December 3 last year, which was swiftly overturned after lawmakers and protesters mobilised against it.
“The statements by Shin and Chung … show how Yoon immersed himself in delusional thoughts about what he was going to do, shutting himself off from others’ opinions as he recklessly forced through the martial law decree,” Jung Suk-koo, former executive editor of the progressive Hankyoreh daily, told This Week in Asia.
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“[Shin and Chung] were apparently sidelined when Yoon began preparing martial law with assistance from three of his high school alumni, who were serving as defence minister, home minister, and commander of the military counter-intelligence command.”
Yoon and the three individuals have been taken into custody. The former president has been charged with masterminding the “insurrection”. The others, including former home minister Lee Sang-min, face charges for playing key roles.
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While testifying in court at Lee’s trial, Shin said he had been “deeply disappointed” in Yoon, who lied to him about his plans to impose martial law.
