Why is South Korea angry that Yoon Suk Yeol wasn't sentenced to death?

"Although life imprisonment and the death penalty are in effect the same in a country that has not executed anyone since 1997, many South Koreans see Yoon's sentence as dangerously lenient. A Gwangju civic coalition called the life term a failure to deliver even minimal justice. Other South Korean human rights groups, civic groups, labour unions and political parties also issued statements expressing dismay."

"He was then pardoned and released in 1997. He lived freely until his death in 2021. In closing arguments, prosecutors said the death penalty in South Korea's criminal justice system does not mean execution but rather functions as the community's will to respond to crime. The criminal code offers only three punishments for the ringleaders of an insurrection: death, life with labour, or life without labour."

Former president Yoon Suk Yeol was convicted of leading an insurrection and sentenced to life imprisonment with labour for his failed December 2024 martial law declaration. Hundreds of opponents initially cheered the sentencing outside the court, but public mood shifted to disappointment and anger over perceived leniency. Life with labour allows parole after 20 years. Civic groups, human rights organizations, labour unions and political parties criticized the sentence as insufficient. Some political leaders had sought a death sentence with no parole. International human rights groups opposed executing Yoon while acknowledging the severity of the charges. Historical pardons and elite impunity concerns shape public anger.

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