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Court approves broadcast of former PM Han Duck-soo's trial

Published: 29 Sep. 2025, 16:30 Updated: 29 Sep. 2025, 19:28

Former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo appears for questioning at the office of Special Counsel Min Joong-ki's team, which is investigating allegations surrounding former First Lady Kim Keon Hee, at the KT Gwanghwamun Building in Jongno District, Seoul on Sept. 9. Han faces allegations of taking bribes and exerting influence in personnel matters linked to Seohee Construction. [YONHAP]

A Seoul court approved the broadcast of former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo’s trial, set for Tuesday, on charges of aiding an attempted insurrection linked to former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s short-lived martial law order. It is the second time a lower court has allowed a criminal trial to be broadcast, following last Friday's airing of Yoon’s obstruction of justice case.

The Seoul Central District Court’s Criminal Division said on Monday it accepted a request from the special counsel team under Article 11 of the Special Prosecutor Act. The court will record the hearing, edit the footage with blurs and other privacy measures and later release it to the public.

Under the law, if a special counsel or defendant requests a broadcast, the court must approve it unless there are exceptional circumstances.

At the prosecution’s request, footage involving evidence from presidential office CCTV cameras will not be released. The special counsel argued during a Sept. 16 pretrial hearing that “the footage was taken in a military protection zone and should not be made public.”

The video reportedly shows Han meeting with former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun before the Dec. 3 martial law declaration. He is seen gesturing the numbers “four” and “one” while discussing attendance for a cabinet meeting.

The court also granted media outlets permission to film before the trial begins, in line with Supreme Court regulations on courtroom access and photography, though “filming is limited to before proceedings begin, cameras cannot be placed on the bench and recording must not cause disturbance.”

Last week, another division of the same court allowed the broadcast of Yoon’s first hearing under the same law. Trials of former presidents — Park Geun-hye and Lee Myung-bak — were only televised during sentencing.

Han was indicted without detention on Aug. 29 for allegedly helping Yoon declare martial law on Dec. 3 last year. Prosecutors say he received and reviewed the proclamation in advance, knew it was unconstitutional and illegal and still allowed it to proceed.

He is also accused of checking attendance to ensure the cabinet met quorum and asking ministers to sign the proclamation, creating a false appearance of proper procedure.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY CHOI SEO-IN [[email protected]]