Han Myeong-suk Case to the Corruption Investigation Office? ... Park Ju-min "Legally Subject to It"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Cheol-eung] The Democratic Party of Korea is continuously urging a reinvestigation into the illegal political funds case involving former Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook. There is also talk of the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Division (HOCI) potentially conducting an investigation.

On the 21st, Kim Tae-nyeon, the Democratic Party floor leader, appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' and said, "There are many suspicious circumstances, so we should not simply assume innocence or that everything was done properly. I hope the heads of each institution consider that there is room for suspicion and take another look and investigate." This was a repeated demand for reinvestigation to the Ministry of Justice, the prosecution, and the courts following the previous day.

In addition to the memorandum of the late Han Man-ho, who testified to the prosecution that he gave bribes to former Prime Minister Han but later reversed his statement in court, Kim cited the fact that Han's case was mentioned in documents related to judicial manipulation. Kim pointed out that the prosecution's investigation took place ahead of the 2010 local elections, saying, "There is a document created to gain the support of the then Saenuri Party leader to push through the Supreme Court Act. In it, the then Saenuri Party leader officially requested the swift handling of Han Myeong-sook's political funds violation case. Therefore, if the Supreme Court were to overturn all charges on the grounds of innocence, it would be practically difficult to persuade them. Such a document has been made public."

However, before mentioning former Prime Minister Han's retrial application or HOCI investigation, Kim drew a line by emphasizing reinvestigation by the prosecution and courts. He said, "Since Han Man-ho, who wrote the memorandum, has passed away, there are many opinions that a retrial would be disadvantageous. I hope the relevant institutions such as the prosecution, Ministry of Justice, and courts take a look first. I will stop here for today."

At the time of former Prime Minister Han's case, the prosecution investigation team emphasized in a press release the previous day that the court had ruled the memorandum baseless and that there was no planned or coercive investigation. Although Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae hinted at the possibility of reinvestigation during her appearance at the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, the general view is that the prosecution itself is not strongly inclined to pursue it.

Democratic Party lawmaker Park Joo-min appeared on MBC's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus' on the same day and, when asked about the possibility of an HOCI investigation, said, "Legally, it falls under the jurisdiction of HOCI," adding, "Since HOCI is independent, it depends on HOCI's judgment."

Regarding former Prime Minister Han's opinion, he said, "I have not heard anything," clarifying that the demand is based on the Democratic Party's own judgment. Some have criticized this as "stoking the fire" ahead of Han's possible pardon. In response, Park said, "There are talks about retrial or pardon, but we did not discuss it with that expectation. It is not just about the memorandum; since the judicial manipulation documents that the Democratic Party has consistently raised for the past two years have also come up, I think it should be taken seriously."

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