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During his detention, Kim Yong Hyun, South Korea’s former defense minister, tried to take his own life following the president’s martial law announcement before authorities intervened.
This, as police raided President Yoon Suk Yeol’s office Wednesday amid the investigation into the president’s declaration.
The Democratic Party, the primary liberal opposition in South Korea, intends to conduct a second impeachment vote against Yoon on Saturday. This comes after the initial impeachment endeavor failed last week and is related to Yoon’s decision to enforce martial law.
Shin Yong Hae, commissioner general of the Korea Correctional Service, told lawmakers Wednesday at a parliament committee meeting that Kim attempted to kill himself overnight at a detention center in the capital of Seoul but that the attempt to end his life was unsuccessful after officials stopped him.
The country’s main law enforcement agencies are centering on whether Yoon, Kim and others involved in the martial law decree committed the crime of rebellion, for which a conviction carries a maximum sentence of death.
Yoon, a conservative, apologized on Saturday for the martial law declaration, saying he would not seek to avoid legal or political responsibility for the motion. He also said he would leave it to his party to lead the country through its political turmoil, “including matters related to my term in office.”
In declaring martial law, Yoon said he wanted to rebuild the country by eliminating “shameless North Korea followers and anti-state forces,” a criticism of his liberal rivals who control parliament.
Opposition parties and many experts say the martial law decree was unconstitutional. This was the first time martial law was imposed in South Korea in more than 40 years.
During a parliamentary hearing Tuesday, Kwak Jong-keun, commander of the Army Special Warfare Command whose troops were sent to parliament, testified that Yoon called him and requested that troops deployed at parliament “quickly destroy the door and drag out the lawmakers who are inside.”
Kwak said he did not follow Yoon’s order.
Participants gather to stage a rally demanding South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s impeachment, in front of the headquarters of the ruling People Power Party in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024. (AP)
Senior officer Kim Dae-woo of the military’s counterintelligence agency said at the same hearing that his commander, Yeo In-hyung, asked him if an army bunker in Seoul had space to detain politicians and other figures after martial law was declared. Yeo is considered a close associate of Kim.
If Yoon is impeached, his powers will be suspended until the Constitutional Court decides whether to remove him from office. Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, the second in command in the South Korean government, would take over his presidential responsibilities.
Should the president be removed, an election to replace him must be held within 60 days.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
