Ex-ROK President Yoon Gets Life Sentence: Declaration of Martial Law without Cause Has Heavy Price

Editorial

15:53 JST, February 20, 2026

An extremely severe judicial ruling has been handed down to the former president who plunged South Korea into chaos and shocked the international community with a sudden declaration of martial law.

The price for attempting to invoke state power to remove dissent is steep.

In December 2024 in South Korea, then President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law. In a trial in which he was charged with crimes including leading an insurrection, the Seoul Central District Court sentenced him to life imprisonment. The special prosecution team had sought the death penalty.

Yoon declared martial law on the grounds that the country’s left-leaning opposition forces, which held a majority in the National Assembly at the time, were obstructing the management of his administration. He allegedly dispatched troops to the National Assembly, which holds the authority to demand the lifting of martial law, and attempted to arrest lawmakers.

The ruling determined that this series of actions constituted an “insurrection” under the criminal code.

Yoon had argued for his innocence, claiming it was a “legitimate exercise of authority” to inform the public of the opposition’s autocratic behavior.

However, a president can only declare martial law during “wartime or a state of national emergency equivalent to wartime.” In April last year, the Constitutional Court impeached Yoon, ruling that the declaration of martial law constituted a grave violation of the law.

It must be said that Yoon bears heavy responsibility for deploying the military to the National Assembly to suppress opposition party activities.

South Korea has seen a succession of presidential scandals in the past, leading to a parade of former presidents being arrested after leaving office.

In addition to the concentration of power in the hands of presidents making it easy for them to abuse it, the deep-rooted conflict between conservatives and leftists has likely also contributed to the downfall of successive presidents.

It is undeniable that new administrations’ rejection of the policies of their predecessors, to the point that they have torn up agreements in foreign affairs, has undermined South Korea’s international credibility in some respects.

This trial saw exceptional permissiveness of live broadcasts on television and the internet. The ruling party side has argued that preserving a record of the proceedings was necessary to prevent a recurrence, but videos and other media edited to disparage Yoon have been posted online.

With South Korea facing unified local elections in June, concerns remain that both leftists and conservatives will intensify their mutual condemnations in an effort to expand their support.

President Lee Jae Myung, who succeeded Yoon, has said that he will “serve all as the president for everyone.” It is hoped that he will work toward reconciliation in South Korean society, where Yoon’s martial law declaration deepened existing divisions.

It is praiseworthy that the Lee administration, like the previous Yoon administration, places importance on Japan-South Korea relations. It is hoped that the Lee administration will overcome partisan conflict and advance policies that contribute to regional stability, together with Japan.

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Feb. 20, 2026)