Gov't to launch task force to identify officials involved with martial law attempt
Published: 11 Nov. 2025, 21:54
Updated: 12 Nov. 2025, 16:18
![President Lee Jae Myung speaks at a Cabinet meeting held at the Presidential Office in Yongsan, central Seoul, on Nov. 11. [SCREEN CAPTURE]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/11/12/2259f856-ed21-4e62-8d30-f5503d5ee0e5.jpg)
President Lee Jae Myung speaks at a Cabinet meeting held at the Presidential Office in Yongsan, central Seoul, on Nov. 11. [SCREEN CAPTURE]
The government will launch a task force under the prime minister's office to investigate and take disciplinary action against public officials involved in former President Yoon Suk Yeol's declaration of martial law on Dec. 3, 2024. Each of the 49 central administrative agencies will also form its own investigation team comprising at least 10 members.
This new personnel overhaul initiative — which follows President Lee Jae Myung's approval of an extension on a special probe's investigation into Yoon's alleged insurrection — has already drawn accusations of political retaliation from the opposition.
The president approved Prime Minister Kim Min-seok's proposal to form a task force during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday at the presidential office in Yongsan District, central Seoul, saying, “This is something that must be done.”
“Responsibility for the insurrection varies depending on involvement,” Lee said. “Some may be subject to criminal charges; some to administrative accountability; and others to disciplinary or personnel actions at a lower level. So a task force seems necessary. We shouldn’t rely solely on the special probe. The government must also act independently.”
At the meeting, Kim explained that the task force will “ensure that swift disciplinary action is taken after internal investigations.”
“The prolonged trials and investigations have delayed national recovery from the insurrection,” said Kim. “There have even been reports of individuals involved in the insurrection being considered for promotions, invoking division within the civil service and weakening the administration’s ability to govern.”
![President Lee Jae Myung, right, asks a question to Prime Minister Kim Min-seok during a Cabinet meeting held at the Presidential Office in Yongsan, central Seoul, on Nov. 11. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/11/12/10a54ae2-17ce-4d39-9ab3-5b667757745f.jpg)
President Lee Jae Myung, right, asks a question to Prime Minister Kim Min-seok during a Cabinet meeting held at the Presidential Office in Yongsan, central Seoul, on Nov. 11. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]
The goal, according to the prime minister’s office, is to identify officials who directly participated in or supported the Dec. 3 martial law operation. This includes actions taken up to six months before the event, such as involvement in premeditated plans, as well as any efforts to justify or conceal them following the Constitutional Court’s impeachment ruling on April 4. Officials who were not directly involved but used their public position to offer material or personnel support may also be investigated.
A central task force under the prime minister's office will oversee the agencies' teams and verify their findings, and investigations will employ interviews, written inquiries and digital forensics. Official property, such as work computers and documents, will be examined by an audit authority, and officials will be encouraged to voluntarily submit their personal phones for review. Strongly suspicious or uncooperative officials may face suspension or a criminal referral.
“Agencies must complete the formation of their task force by Nov. 21, finish investigations by January and conclude all HR measures before the Seollal [Lunar New Year] holidays,” said a government official. Next year's Seollal falls on Feb. 17, 2026, but the extended holidays start on Feb. 14.
With the task force now formally underway, the “end of the insurrection” is expected to dominate political discourse — especially since the government is facing backlash from prosecutors for deciding not to appeal the first trial ruling in the Daejang-dong scandal, raising the possibility that the task force could escalate tensions between the executive and the legal system.
![Parliamentary staff use fire extinguishers to repel martial law forces inside the National Assembly in Yeouido, western Seoul, on Dec. 4, 2024. [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/11/12/85207086-1b87-45f5-b32c-b18d7f036f27.jpg)
Parliamentary staff use fire extinguishers to repel martial law forces inside the National Assembly in Yeouido, western Seoul, on Dec. 4, 2024. [YONHAP]
Choi Eun-seok, the chief spokesperson for the People Power Party (PPP), criticized the move as “a ploy to sustain the ‘purge the insurrection’ narrative through next year’s local elections” if an arrest warrant for former PPP floor leader Choo Kyung-ho is denied. Fellow spokesperson Kwak Gyu-taek called it “an attempt to distract people from the fallout over the decision not to appeal the Daejang-dong ruling.”
There is also speculation that high-ranking officials appointed during the Yoon administration may now be purged. PPP Rep. Na Kyung-won said, “They talk of defending the Constitution, but this is a task force built to purge civil servants who don’t show loyalty to the current administration. If you dissent, you’re labeled a remnant of the rebellion. If you don’t show loyalty, your name disappears from promotion lists. This is the beginning of a loyalty-first bureaucracy.”
Talks about the task force first became public during a National Assembly audit of the presidential office on Nov. 6. In response to Democratic Party (DP) lawmaker Kim Young-bae’s suggestion that officials involved in the coup be investigated, Kang Hoon-sik, the presidential chief of staff, agreed, adding, “We may consider launching a separate body if necessary.”
![Former President Yoon Suk Yeol attends the first hearing of his trial on charges including aggravated obstruction of official duties and abuse of power at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on Sept. 26. [JOINT PRESS COPRS]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/11/12/d3a4bfac-324f-4303-bb21-ad6e68183286.jpg)
Former President Yoon Suk Yeol attends the first hearing of his trial on charges including aggravated obstruction of official duties and abuse of power at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on Sept. 26. [JOINT PRESS COPRS]
Following internal discussions, Prime Minister Kim — who, under the Constitution, directs executive ministries on the president’s behalf — was designated to lead the effort. A DP official said, “President Lee and the prime minister had hoped to focus on governance. But a flood of complaints from civil servants about ‘coup participants getting promoted’ convinced them that restoring trust in the civil service quickly was a priority.”
Even within the ruling bloc, there are concerns that this initiative could mirror the Moon Jae-in administration’s controversial “Past Evils Committee.” One DP official said, “If the Lee administration stands for pragmatism and unity, then the purge of insurrection remnants should be swift and precise — limited to only what’s necessary.”
A senior DP official added, “The Moon administration’s committee had a vague mandate, whereas this task force has a specific scope: those involved in the Dec. 3 martial law declaration. It won’t be the same.”
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 OH HYUN-SEOK, PARK JUN-KYU, JO SU-BIN [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
To write comments, please log in to one of the accounts.
Standards Board Policy (0/250자)