Former Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn, who was arrested on the 12th by the special counsel investigating the insurrection case on charges of incitement and agitation for insurrection, said, "There was no insurrection itself," and "I am now fighting a mad dog."
Hwang said this as he appeared at the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office in Seocho-gu, Seoul, where the special counsel's office is located, pulling out a prepared statement and saying, "If a mad dog runs wild in the neighborhood, it must be stopped," and "I am now fighting a mad dog. The opponent I am fighting is not the special counsel. Not the prosecution either. I am fighting an anti-democratic dictatorship."
As for why he had refused the special counsel's investigation, he said, "The henchmen are telling me to come — are you saying I should walk in on my own two feet and be questioned?" and "It's illegal, so I cannot walk into the special counsel's office on my own."
Hwang said, "They say I am an accomplice to insurrection, but to be an accomplice there must be a principal offender. But did the crime of insurrection even exist? No matter how you look at it, there was no insurrection itself," and added, "Insurrection is a riot with the purpose of disrupting the constitutional order. Does it make sense to say a sitting president disrupts the constitutional order?" He went on, "Even globally, there is no place where a president commits insurrection," and said, "Was the search and seizure of the National Election Commission, the ringleader of fraudulent elections, a riot?"
Hwang said, "Former President Yoon Suk-yeol only used martial law to search and seize the election commission," and added, "Is this insurrection? You who are toppling the country by slapping on insurrection charges are the very insurrection." When asked by reporters who the "mad dog" referred to, he said, "You all know," and added, "It's neither the police nor the special counsel. There are people who are destroying the Republic of Korea."
◇Special counsel says "Hwang, who served as ruling party leader and prime minister, has different reach"
Park Ji-young, deputy special counsel of the special counsel investigating the insurrection case, said at a briefing that day, "At about 6:55 a.m. today we executed an arrest warrant for former Prime Minister Hwang on charges of incitement to insurrection and simultaneously executed a search and seizure warrant," and added, "In the current questioning, the right to remain silent is being exercised."
The special counsel said it demanded Hwang appear a total of three times via text message and in writing, but he refused all of them, so it obtained an arrest warrant from the court and executed it. Deputy Special Counsel Park added, "It was confirmed that all the text messages were read, and all the appearance demand letters were refused," and said, "It appears he effectively recognized the three demands to appear but still refused."
Deputy Special Counsel Park said, "After finishing the questioning, we plan to proceed in accordance with the Criminal Procedure Act," and added, "Under the Criminal Act, the crime of incitement to insurrection is punishable by imprisonment or confinement with labor for three years or more. It is not a light offense." The special counsel is expected to request an arrest warrant before the 48-hour detention deadline expires as soon as questioning is completed.
The special counsel believes that former Prime Minister Hwang, a former Minister of Justice and prime minister, recognized the illegality of the emergency martial law but attempted to incite insurrection by posting on social media (SNS) in support of former President Yoon Suk-yeol's declaration of martial law. On Dec. 3, the day martial law was declared, Hwang posted on Facebook, saying, "We must eradicate this time the pro–North Korea Juche faction that ruined the country and the fraudulent election forces," and, "Arrest National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-sik. Also arrest People Power Party leader Han Dong-hoon, who is blatantly obstructing the president's measures."
Deputy Special Counsel Park said, "While serving as Minister of Justice, Hwang oversaw the handling of insurrection-related cases (of the Unified Progressive Party) as a whole," and added, "As someone who also served as ruling party leader and prime minister, his social impact and weight are different from those of an ordinary person." Park said they had also completed searches and seizures of those involved in Hwang's insurrection propaganda activities and would summon them soon for questioning.
◇"Former NIS Director Cho Tae-yong, first case applying 'duty to report to the National Assembly' violation"
Meanwhile, regarding former National Intelligence Service (NIS) Director Cho Tae-yong, for whom the court issued an arrest warrant that morning, the special counsel investigating the insurrection case said, "This is the first case in which the NIS director's violation of the duty to report to the National Assembly's Intelligence Committee has been charged as dereliction of duty."
Deputy Special Counsel Park said, "An amendment to the National Intelligence Service Act, which took effect in Jan. 2021, newly established a provision requiring immediate reporting to the president or the Intelligence Committee when a situation arises that has a significant impact on national security," and added, "It is an important opportunity to affirm the duty of the NIS director, which requires a high degree of political neutrality."