Korean Party: "Democratic Party Coordinating Recruitment of Judge Lee Su-jin... Trial Deal"

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] The Liberty Korea Party criticized on the 5th that the Democratic Party of Korea is coordinating the recruitment of Chief Judge Lee Su-jin, who had raised suspicions of judicial manipulation related to the delay in the forced labor trials during the Japanese colonial period, calling it a 'trial deal.'

Jang Neung-in, the full-time deputy spokesperson of the Liberty Korea Party, stated this in a commentary on the same day, asserting the rumor of recruiting Chief Judge Lee. Earlier, some media outlets reported that the Democratic Party was considering recruiting this judge as a talent for the general election.

Deputy Spokesperson Jang criticized, "In an interview with a media outlet on the 2nd, Judge Lee said, 'If given the opportunity, I want to run in a local constituency in this year's general election and be judged by the people,' and 'In the United States, the president sometimes appoints judges with specific political orientations,' giving the impression that she openly acknowledges being a judge with a particular political inclination."

Deputy Spokesperson Jang pointed out, "Sitting judges have the duty to adjudicate independently according to their conscience under the Constitution and laws. It is highly inappropriate for a sitting judge to forget their fundamental role and make remarks suggesting recruitment by a specific political party," and added, "If Judge Lee's statement that 'the Democratic Party persistently requested her to run' is true, the Democratic Party cannot be free from criticism that it effectively coerced or forced a sitting judge, who cannot qualify as a party member under the Political Parties Act, to join the party."

He also pointed out that the ruling party's attempt to recruit a sitting judge is a trial deal. Deputy Spokesperson Jang said, "The biggest problem with the Democratic Party's recent talent recruitment attempt is that coordinating the recruitment of a sitting judge into a political party itself is a serious infringement on the independence of the judiciary," and added, "Which citizen would accept as fair a ruling made by a sitting judge who is weighing running in the general election? If this continues, not only will the rulings made with a 'Democratic Party mindset' by this judge be questioned, but also the sincerity of the allegations that former Chief Justice Yang Sung-tae engaged in trial deals will be doubted."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.