Han Duck-soo had been sentenced to 23 years by a lower court for his role in the 2024 martial law crisis
Han Duck-soo, who was South Korea’s prime minister at the time of the 2024 martial law crisis, attends the reading of the verdict in his trial on charges of performing essential duties in service of an insurrection, held on Jan. 21, 2026, at the Seoul Central District Court. (still from video provided by Seoul Central District Court)
A Korean appeals court shortened former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo’s prison sentence from 23 years to 15 years for his role in the 2024 insurrection.Judge Lee Seung-cheol of the Seoul High Court sentenced Han to 15 years in a hearing that began at 10 am on Thursday. Han faced charges of engaging in essential activities in an insurrection, falsification of official documents, and perjury, among others.Han’s role in former President Yoon Suk-yeol’s declaration of martial law on Dec. 3, 2024, included attempts to make it seem that the martial law decision had been deliberated by Cabinet members and to collect signatures on relevant documents from Cabinet members after martial law had already been declared.Han was also charged with first signing, and then destroying, an ex-post-facto martial law proclamation to give Yoon’s actions the appearance of procedural legitimacy and for committing perjury during Yoon’s impeachment trial by feigning ignorance about the martial law proclamation.A lower court had convicted Han on the majority of the charges and sentenced him to 23 years in prison.“It was the defendant’s duty to guide the president in the legal exercise of his authority and to duly act to check or prevent the wrongful exercise of that authority. The defendant cannot avoid facing stern punishment commensurate to his position,” the judge said during the sentencing.By Oh Yeon-seo, staff reporter; Lee Na-young, staff reporterPlease direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]
