Supporters of ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol hold placards showing a picture of Yoon during a rally near the Constitutional Court in Seoul on Feb. 25, as Yoon is scheduled to attend his final impeachment hearing. (AFP-Yonhap)
Supporters of ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol hold placards showing a picture of Yoon during a rally near the Constitutional Court in Seoul on Feb. 25, as Yoon is scheduled to attend his final impeachment hearing. (AFP-Yonhap)

A court on Thursday allowed the press to take photographs and videos of former President Yoon Suk Yeol's second criminal trial hearing on insurrection charges next week.

The Seoul Central District Court said it decided to open the courtroom to the press before the start of the hearing scheduled for 10 a.m. Monday.

"Following a request for the defendant's opinion, we decided to allow (filming) after comprehensively considering the level of public interest, the people's right to know, and the legal interests of the defendant and other relevant people," the court said.

During the first hearing earlier this week, the same court denied access to the press, leading to criticism the court was giving preferential treatment to Yoon.

The court explained it received two requests from the press to film the hearing but rejected both as they were filed with little time left to ask for the defendant's opinion and follow other necessary procedures.

Under relevant court rules, a presiding judge can permit filming inside the courtroom with the defendant's consent or when it is deemed justifiable for the public interest. Yoon's side is known to have objected to the filming.

In the past, the media were allowed to photograph and film the first hearing of former President Park Geun-hye's corruption trial in 2017, as well as the first hearing of former President Lee Myung-bak's corruption trial the following year. (Yonhap)