South Korea’s former defense minister was prevented from attempting suicide while in detention because martial law was declared last week, officials said Wednesday, as President Yeon Suk-yul’s office resisted a police attempt to search the compound.
Former Defense Minister Kim Young-hyun attempted suicide late Tuesday night at a detention center in Seoul, Shin Young-hae, commissioner-general of the Korea Correctional Service, told lawmakers. He said that correctional officers arrested him and that his condition was stable.
At the same parliamentary committee meeting, Justice Minister Park Sung-jae confirmed Kim’s suicide attempt.
Prosecutors arrested Kim early Wednesday on charges of playing a major role in the rebellion and committing abuse of power. He became the first person to be officially arrested due to the martial law decree.
Kim, a close confidant of Yoon, has been accused of recommending that martial law be imposed on Yoon and sending troops to the National Assembly to prevent lawmakers from voting on it. A sufficient number of lawmakers were eventually able to enter the parliament hall and unanimously rejected Yoon’s decree, forcing the government to rescind it before dawn on December 4.
Kim apologized in a statement on Tuesday and said that full responsibility for imposing martial law lay with him, while calling for leniency with the soldiers deployed to enforce it. Prosecutors have up to 20 days to decide whether to charge Kim.
Police wait for hours in the president’s office
Yoon’s ill-considered seizure of power has paralyzed South Korean politics, frozen its foreign policy, and rattled financial markets.
South Korean police said they sent officers to search Yoon’s office on Wednesday to search for any evidence related to the imposition of martial law. But investigators failed to enter the office until Wednesday evening, about six hours after their arrival, senior police officer Lee Ho-young told parliament.
A participant wearing a mask of South Korean President Yeon Suk-yeol attends a rally calling for his impeachment
Some observers previously said that the presidential security service would likely not allow a search of Yoon’s office, citing a law that prohibits searching sites containing state secrets without the approval of those responsible for those areas.
Yoon apologized on Saturday for the martial law decree, saying he would not evade legal or political responsibility for it. He said he would leave it to his party to chart a course through the country’s political turmoil, “including matters related to my term in office.”
Vice Defense Minister Kim Seon-ho confirmed on Wednesday that Yoon remains in charge of the military. But Yoon has not participated in any major official activities since martial law was lifted.
On Tuesday, the Justice Ministry banned Yoon from leaving the country while he faces investigations.
North Korea makes fun of the crisis for the first time
The main opposition Liberal Democratic Party is pushing for a new motion to impeach Yoon over his Dec. 3 decree that imposed martial law in South Korea for the first time in more than four decades. that it The first attempt to remove Yoon failed last Saturday After representatives of the ruling party boycotted the vote. The party said it intends to submit the new proposal on Thursday for a vote on Saturday.
On Wednesday, rival North Korea’s state media first reported cross-border unrest, but the country did not show any suspicious activity.
A report by North Korea’s official news agency mostly attempted to explain the South Korean events, although it described Yoon as a “traitor” and his military “gangsters.”
Many experts say North Korea is sensitive to the domestic spread of news about major anti-government protests in foreign countries because its people do not have formal access to international news and can be affected by such events.
Also on Wednesday, National Police Agency Commissioner-General Cho Ji-ho and Kim Bong-sik, head of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, were detained for their actions during martial law.
They are being investigated for their role in deploying police forces to the National Assembly to prevent lawmakers from voting to lift Yoon’s martial law decree.
If you or someone you know is struggling, here’s where to get help:
This guide is from Center for Addiction and Mental Health Explains how to talk about suicide with someone you’re worried about.
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