South Korea’s Yoon denies martial law plot at impeachment hearing, moved to hospital
He claimed the declaration sought to highlight opposition abuses instead of disabling parliament, and argued their actions brought the country to the brink of collapse
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol attended on Tuesday a Constitutional Court hearing of his impeachment trial, where he denied ordering military commanders to drag lawmakers out of parliament during his short-lived bid to impose martial law.
Near the start of the hearing, Yoon said he had worked in public service with “a firm commitment to free democracy”, when invited by the acting chief justice, Moon Hyung-bae, to speak.
Dressed in a navy-coloured suit with a burgundy tie, Yoon, a career prosecutor before his 2022 election as president, pledged to answer any questions the court might have.
Yoon has been incarcerated since last week under a separate criminal inquiry on charges of leading an insurrection with his attempt to impose martial law in early December, a move that shocked the nation and was overturned within hours by parliament.
Yoon told the hearing that special forces troops sent to parliament on December 3 were not there to disable the legislature or prevent it from blocking his martial law because he knew such an action would have led to an indefensible crisis.
“In this country, parliament and news media are far more powerful than the president, in a far superior position,” he told the court.
