Ex-president allegedly attempted to mislead foreign media to justify martial law

An employee enters the main gate of the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office in Seoul, Sunday, when a special counsel questioning of former President Yoon Suk Yeol took place. Yonhap

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol allegedly attempted to mislead international press by orchestrating a false media narrative following his abrupt declaration of martial law in early December last year, according to the special counsel team investigating the case.

The special counsel submitted a 66-page arrest warrant request on Sunday. It alleges Yoon deliberately presented the martial law declaration to foreign media as legally justified. The team described these claims as factually false and an unlawful abuse of presidential authority.

Investigators allege that after martial law was lifted in the early morning of Dec. 4 — just hours after its abrupt declaration — Yoon, facing mounting political and legal pressure, called Ha Tae-won, then-presidential secretary for foreign public relations, personally in the afternoon on the same day.

He allegedly instructed Ha to draft and distribute a press guidance document to international media outlets to portray the martial law decision as constitutionally grounded and legally and procedurally sound.

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol leaves the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office in southern Seoul, Sunday, after being questioned over his martial law fiasco. Yonhap

Several foreign media reporters who spoke to The Korea Times on condition of anonymity, confirmed that Ha did send them the messages, seemingly intended to spread false narratives aimed at defusing both domestic and international criticism. The press guidance was reportedly distributed to major international news outlets, including AP, AFP, ABC, CNN, The New York Times, The Washington Post and Asahi Shimbun.

"Upon receiving the text, reporters independently chose whether to include the press guidance in their coverage. As a guidance is not mandatory, its inclusion was left to individual discretion," one of the foreign media reporters said.

According to the sources, the messages began by explaining the rationale behind Yoon’s decision, framing it as a necessary response to a series of impeachment motions from the opposition. They went on to include several assertions that investigators say were factually inaccurate.

One claim asserted that Yoon was aware of the legal requirement that a majority of National Assembly members must approve lifting martial law and that he did not impede lawmakers’ access to the main chamber of the Assembly.

"About 190 members of the National Assembly were not barred from entering the Assembly building. Their access to the Assembly was not prevented in order for the Assembly to make its decision on the emergency measures," the message read.

However, live video footage from that night contradicts this claim, showing police and security personnel stationed at the main gate of the Assembly, blocking entry and forcing lawmakers to find alternative ways to access the building.

The press guidance also claimed that Yoon deliberately delayed the deployment of troops by an hour to avoid causing harm to civilians: “To minimize disruption to the lives of ordinary citizens and the national economy, the emergency measures were announced at 10:30 p.m. Troops were deployed at 11:30 p.m., one hour after the initial announcement.”

Yet, during testimony at the Constitutional Court, military personnel involved in the operation stated that the delay was due to weather conditions, not a deliberate effort to protect civilians.

The special counsel team concluded that these claims were knowingly false and that Yoon’s directive to Ha amounted to an abuse of authority. They argue that compelling a public official to perform duties beyond his legal obligations constitutes obstruction of the lawful exercise of rights.

A passerby walks past the Seoul Central District Court in southern Seoul, Monday. Yonhap

Meanwhile, a local court is scheduled to review the special counsel's request to issue an arrest warrant for Yoon on Wednesday.

The Seoul Central District Court announced that the warrant review will take place at 2:15 p.m., and Yoon's lawyers said the former president will appear in the courtroom to defend himself.

The court decision on Yoon’s arrest is expected as early as Wednesday night or in the early hours of Thursday.

On Jan. 19, Yoon was arrested over the martial law issue when the prosecution was investigating the case, but was released on March 8 after a court granted his release.