Ahn Cheol-soo, a member of the People Power Party, testified as a witness in the trial of Daegu Mayor Choo Kyung-ho, who is accused of obstructing the vote to lift martial law during the December 3 emergency situation. Ahn claimed he was unable to attend the vote due to police restrictions on access to the National Assembly.
During the trial held on July 8 at the Seoul Central District Court, Ahn recounted the events surrounding the martial law declaration. He stated that he arrived at the National Assembly around midnight on the day martial law was declared but was prevented from entering by police, prompting him to move to the party headquarters.
Ahn testified that he received multiple messages from Choo regarding a gathering of party members from that night until the early hours of the next day, noting that the location changed several times between the National Assembly and the party headquarters.
In fact, Ahn spoke to reporters outside the party headquarters at the time, saying, "Initially, the message was to come to the main assembly hall, but then it changed to come to the party headquarters, leading to some confusion."
However, during his testimony, Ahn stated that the changes in location were not intended to obstruct the vote. He emphasized, "Given that I could not enter the National Assembly due to police restrictions, even without a gathering notice from the party, I would have gone to the party headquarters as it was the only viable option in Yeouido. The police obstructed access; there was no interference from the party itself," supporting Choo's defense.
Ahn also mentioned that it was Han Dong-hoon, the party leader, who first suggested the party headquarters as the gathering location, and Choo announced it accordingly.
In contrast to Ahn's testimony, the special prosecutor's team pointed out that the majority of ruling party members were absent from the vote, attributing significant responsibility to Choo for the location change.
The special prosecutor's team noted, "Out of 108 members of the People Power Party, 90 were absent, while most opposition members attended. If police restrictions were the issue, then members of other parties should have also been unable to enter. Why was the attendance rate so low only for the People Power Party?"
In response, Ahn expressed, "I find it hard to understand," suggesting that the Democratic Party may have had prior knowledge of information related to the martial law or that they shared information among themselves regarding which side would be easier to cross.
He reiterated that even if they received a notice for the gathering, the decision to attend the main assembly was ultimately up to each individual member, further defending Choo.
The court plans to continue the proceedings on July 15, calling People Power Party member Seo Beom-soo as a witness for further questioning.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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