South Korea has handed a 23-year prison sentence to former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo for his role in the 2024 martial law crisis, marking the first major conviction linked to former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s short-lived rebellion.
The Seoul Central District Court ruled that Yoon’s December 2024 imposition of martial law constituted an act of rebellion. Han, 76, who served as Yoon’s caretaker prime minister, was found guilty of legitimizing the decree through the Cabinet Council, falsifying the martial law proclamation, destroying official documents, and lying under oath.
“Because of the defendant’s actions, the Republic of Korea could have returned to a dark past when basic rights and the liberal democratic order were trampled,” Judge Lee Jin-gwan said during the televised verdict.
Han’s conviction comes ahead of a scheduled trial for Yoon, who faces multiple charges, including rebellion, and whose sentencing for related offenses is set for February 19. Yoon has consistently denied wrongdoing, insisting the decree aimed to counter parliamentary obstruction of his agenda.
Han, a veteran bureaucrat, became acting president after Yoon was impeached but briefly clashed with lawmakers over filling vacancies at the Constitutional Court. He later resigned to contest the snap presidential election but withdrew after failing to secure his party’s nomination.
The martial law enforcement in December 2024 was short-lived and largely symbolic, as troops and police did not prevent protests, and lawmakers successfully voted down Yoon’s decree. Nevertheless, the episode revived memories of South Korea’s authoritarian past and destabilized domestic politics, financial markets, and international perceptions.
Several top officials from Yoon’s administration—including defense, justice, and security chiefs—are also under indictment for their involvement in the rebellion.
