SEOUL, December 11. /TASS/. South Korea’s former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun attempted suicide while under arrest over the botched martial law attempt, the Yonhap news agency reported.
The former official’s current health condition is not life-threatening, the agency said.
Shin Yong-hae, commissioner-general of the Korea Correctional Service, told parliamentary hearings on Wednesday that the suicide attempt was thwarted by a detention facility worker at around midnight local time on Tuesday. Kim Yong-hyun locked himself up in a restroom and tried to commit suicide, but "gave it up as soon as we rushed there and forced the door open," he said.
"It was reported that his [the ex-minister’s] health remains stable," the official added.
Earlier, South Korean media reported that Kim Yong-hyun was the one who proposed the martial law declaration to the president and then sent troops to the National Assembly to prevent legislators from cancelling it. The charges of insurrection to overthrow the constitutional order that were laid against him entail a very severe punishment, up to life imprisonment or death sentence.
On the evening of December 3, Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law to combat "pro-North Korean elements" and the paralysis of the executive branch caused by the actions of the parliamentary opposition. Martial law was lifted about six hours later. The opposition initiated impeachment proceedings in the National Assembly on December 4, saying that the president had violated the constitution because there was no basis for martial law.
On December 7, the South Korean parliament voted to impeach the president. The impeachment was not announced because the ruling party boycotted the vote. Before the vote, Yoon Suk Yeol apologized to his fellow citizens and said that he had entrusted state affairs, including the issue of his term, to the ruling party and the government.