Ex-defense chief issued order to prevent 150 lawmakers from gathering at Nat'l Assembly: commander

Former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun issued an order to prevent 150 lawmakers from gathering at the National Assembly on the night of last week's martial law declaration, a military commander said Tuesday.

Lt. Gen. Kwak Jong-keun, chief of the Army Special Warfare Command, claimed at a parliamentary session that he did not follow Kim's order and explained it to troops dispatched to the scene last Tuesday.

Kwak is among military commanders involved in martial law operations who have been under investigation by the prosecution over their role in the decree enforcement.

"An order calling for the number of lawmakers at the National Assembly Hall to be limited to between 100 and 150 had been issued as I received it through a secret phone," Kwak said at an emergency session of the parliamentary defense committee.

Yoon declared martial law in a surprise announcement late Tuesday and rescinded it hours after the opposition-controlled National Assembly unanimously voted to reject it.

Under the Constitution, at least 150 votes are needed for the 300-member National Assembly to lift a martial law decree. All 190 lawmakers who took part in the vote rejected last week's martial law order.

Kwak insisted that he did not order troops at the scene to use blank ammunition and taser guns but said such details were mistakenly shared with military units due to an internal broadcasting glitch.

A day earlier, the head of a special forces unit involved in the martial law enforcement, told reporters that Kwak had asked him whether he could deter some 150 lawmakers from entering the National Assembly.

Col. Kim Hyun-tae, head of the 707th Special Mission Group, said Kwak's remarks appeared to reflect concern over the National Assembly convening a session to pass a motion to demand Yoon lift the decree.

He also said the order regarding the lawmakers appeared to have been issued by former Minister Kim, noting that his unit was first ordered to quickly secure and seal off the parliament building.

In another claim pointing to former minister Kim's role in the decree, the chief of the Defense Intelligence Command said that Kim had ordered military personnel to stand by near the government complex in Gwacheon, south of Seoul.

Maj. Gen. Moon Sang-ho said that he dispatched 10 field-grade officers to the National Election Committee upon the former defense chief's order.

Troops were deployed to the election watchdog after Yoon's martial law order, with local media earlier reporting that members of Moon's command filmed the commission's computer servers at the office.

Moon said the command was tasked with occupying the computer center at the election watchdog until another team showed up. The commander said he himself ordered troops to send photos of the computer center.

When asked about why martial law troops were dispatched to the election watchdog, the former defense chief cited the need to judge whether an investigation is needed into allegations of election rigging, in an interview with local media.

Some conservative critics have raised suspicions over election rigging in the 2020 general elections, but most of the allegations have been dismissed following subsequent probes. (Yonhap)