▲ Police conducting a search and seizure at the Minjung Democratic Party headquarters in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on August 30, 2024, on charges of violating the National Security Act.
It has been confirmed that police have requested arrest warrants for officials of the Minjung Democratic Party who are under investigation for alleged violations of the National Security Act.
The Minjung Democratic Party announced in a press release today (June 13) that "the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office requested arrest warrants for Minjung Democratic Party Representative Han Myeong-hee and Secretary-General Han Jun-hye on June 12."
The party explained that this follows the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's request for arrest warrants on June 11, accusing them of forming an anti-state organization in violation of the National Security Act.
The warrant validity hearings for the two individuals will be held at the Seoul Central District Court on June 16 at 10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m., respectively.
Since 2024, the police have been investigating the Minjung Democratic Party for potential National Security Act violations, conducting two search and seizure operations at the party's headquarters and other locations. In July of last year, the police summoned the representative and party members for questioning as suspects.
The police have suspected that the individuals formed an anti-state organization that sympathizes with North Korea, engaging in activities such as staging protests demanding the withdrawal of U.S. forces and condemning South Korea-U.S. joint military exercises as "war drills for an invasion of the North."
The Minjung Democratic Party strongly protested the request for arrest warrants.
The party claimed, "The so-called 'Minjung Democratic Party case' was orchestrated by the Yoon Suk Yeol insurrectionist forces to suppress groups critical of the regime while they were planning and pushing for an insurrection," adding, "Attempting to punish party officials—who are victims of the insurrection—by framing them as perpetrators is a complete inversion of cause and effect and is absurd."
The Minjung Democratic Party plans to hold a press conference in front of the Seoul Central District Court at 9:00 a.m. on the day of the warrant hearing to condemn the arrest warrant requests and call for their dismissal.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.