A South Korean appeals court reduced the prison sentence of former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo to 15 years [1].
The ruling marks a significant legal development in the aftermath of the brief martial-law declaration that shook the nation's democratic stability. The case centers on the legality of executive actions taken during a period of intense political volatility.
The Seoul High Court issued the decision this week [2, 3]. The court reduced Han's term from an original lower-court sentence of 23 years [4].
Han was found guilty of facilitating the martial-law declaration issued by former President Yoon Suk-yeol on Dec. 3, 2024 [5]. Prosecutors said Han played a critical role in the process by arranging what was described as a façade of a cabinet meeting [6]. This action was deemed an insurrection or martial-law crime under South Korean law [6].
The legal proceedings have focused on the extent to which cabinet members were complicit in the attempt to suspend legislative functions. By creating the appearance of a formal government consensus, Han was seen as providing the necessary administrative cover for the declaration to proceed [6].
While the appeals court granted a reduction in the length of the sentence, the conviction itself remains intact. The reduction reflects the court's reassessment of the specific contributions, and legal culpability, of the former prime minister compared to the primary architects of the declaration [1, 4].
“The court reduced Han's term from an original lower-court sentence of 23 years.”
The reduction of Han Duck-soo's sentence suggests a judicial effort to calibrate punishment based on the specific level of involvement in the 2024 crisis. While the conviction reinforces the principle that administrative facilitation of an illegal power grab is a punishable crime, the shorter term may reflect the court's distinction between those who initiated the martial law and those who managed its bureaucratic execution.
