SEOUL, Feb. 26 — South Korea’s suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol reportedly discussed declaring martial law during private drinking sessions with colleagues, according to a new memoir by Han Dong-hoon, the former leader of Yoon’s ruling party, released on Wednesday.
Yoon sparked a political crisis in December 2023 when he declared martial law, temporarily suspending civilian governance and deploying military personnel to parliament. The decree, which lasted just six hours, was rejected by an opposition-led parliament, leading to Yoon’s impeachment over the controversial move.
In The People First, Han recounts that while party members had heard Yoon express the idea of suspending civilian rule in the past, they never took the threat seriously. Han writes that many lawmakers who had shared drinks with the ousted president admitted, after the fact, that they had underestimated his seriousness about the move.
“A significant number of party lawmakers who had shared drinks with the president said he would often rant about martial law in private gatherings,” Han writes in his memoir. “They bitterly admitted that they hadn’t realised he might have actually meant it.”
The book offers a first-hand account of the tense hours leading up to and following the declaration of martial law. It opens with a dramatic text exchange between Han and a senior presidential official, warning that “the worst” was about to unfold.
According to Han, many lawmakers feared they would be arrested or even killed that night, but they proceeded to the National Assembly to vote down the martial law order. “I might get arrested, but I have to endure it. I need to get to the National Assembly as soon as possible—there’s no time to lose,” Han recalled telling his party spokesperson during the crisis.
Han’s fears were not unfounded. A former senior intelligence official claims to possess a memo detailing individuals Yoon allegedly ordered to be arrested, including Han himself. The book also reveals a tense meeting between Han and Yoon after the martial law was lifted, during which Han confronted the president about the attempt to have him arrested. Yoon reportedly denied the allegations, stating, “There is no truth to the claim.”
Han also shares that a U.S. official expressed “serious concerns” over the martial law declaration, particularly about the uncertainty surrounding leadership in the event of a North Korean attack. “If the martial law situation had not been resolved quickly, it seemed likely that important issues would have arisen in foreign affairs and security, including relations with the United States,” Han writes.
Yoon, currently in custody awaiting trial on charges of insurrection, could face a life sentence or the death penalty if convicted. His impeachment trial at the Constitutional Court of South Korea concluded on Tuesday, with a verdict expected in mid-March.
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