Next Week's Prosecutor Mid-Level Executive Personnel Changes... Will There Be a Wave of Resignations Among Special Investigation Prosecutors?

Direct Investigation Departments Consolidated into 14 Criminal Divisions
Policy to Prioritize Criminal and Trial Prosecutors
Speculation Arises on Additional Reorganization of Yoon Chief Prosecutor's Line

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] Despite the current government's successive measures to 'tighten control over the prosecution,' the prosecution, which had refrained from collective action, is expected to show a different stance after the mid-level executive personnel reshuffle anticipated on the 25th. This is because the reshuffle is perceived as the result of the organizational restructuring announced earlier, which sparked internal opposition within the prosecution, and is seen as the final stage of weakening the prosecution's power.

Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae Photo by Yonhap News

Personnel Committee Countdown... Announcement Immediately After Approval of Organizational Restructuring Plan

On the 24th, the Ministry of Justice will hold a Prosecution Personnel Committee meeting for mid-level executive personnel appointments, including deputy prosecutors and chief prosecutors. The committee members consist of external figures such as lawyers and law professors, as well as internal figures like the Director of the Ministry of Justice Inspection Bureau and the Deputy Prosecutor General of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office.

This is the second mid-level executive personnel reshuffle since Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae took office. As with the first reshuffle in January, the dominant expectation is that many chief prosecutors who handled investigations targeting the current administration will be demoted. Inside and outside the prosecution, there are also remarks such as "there will be a purge of the 'Yoon Seok-yeol faction' that survived the previous reshuffle." It is anticipated that, replacing them, pro-government and criminal division prosecutors will occupy many key positions, similar to the recent appointments of high-ranking prosecutors.

Yoon Seok-yeol, Prosecutor General [Photo by Yonhap News]

Will the Yoon Seok-yeol Faction Investigating the Administration Be Demoted?

This personnel reshuffle reflects the prosecution organizational restructuring plan approved at the vice ministerial meeting on the 20th. The plan mainly involves converting 14 direct investigation departments of prosecution offices nationwide into criminal divisions. Based on this restructuring plan, the Ministry of Justice is reportedly planning to favor prosecutors with extensive experience in criminal and trial divisions over those specialized in special investigations in this reshuffle.

Special investigation prosecutors who have targeted the current administration are expected to be demoted again in this reshuffle. Representative figures include Kim Tae-eun, head of the Public Investigation Division 2 at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, who is investigating allegations of the Blue House's interference in the Ulsan mayoral election, and Lee Jung-seop, head of the Criminal Division 6 at the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office, who indicted former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk and former Busan Deputy Mayor for Economic Affairs Yoo Jae-soo. All of them are classified as the youngest members of the Yoon Seok-yeol faction. Previously, the Ministry of Justice transferred Shin Ja-yong, former 1st Deputy Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, Shin Bong-soo, former 2nd Deputy Chief Prosecutor, Song Kyung-ho, former 3rd Deputy Chief Prosecutor, and Ko Hyung-gon, former head of the Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 2 at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office?all special investigation prosecutors and members of the Yoon Seok-yeol faction?to provincial posts during the last mid-level executive reshuffle.

There are also rumors of replacing Kwon Soon-jung, spokesperson of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office who has acted as the mouthpiece of the Prosecutor General. Han Dong-soo, head of the Inspection Division at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, who repeatedly clashed during the designated case phase related to former Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook and Prosecutor General Yoon, criticized the spokesperson's office on his SNS. Additionally, Cho Sang-won, head of the Criminal Division 6 at the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office, who handled the Lime Asset Management case led by Prosecutor General Yoon, is also classified as a demotion target.

Seoul Seocho-gu Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office [Image source=Yonhap News]

Possibility of Maintaining Pro-Government and Criminal Division Favoritism

It is expected that prosecutors with pro-government leanings will be promoted and assigned to key positions. The currently vacant posts include the 1st and 3rd Deputy Chief Prosecutors of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, the 1st Deputy Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office, and the Deputy Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Western District Prosecutors' Office. Kim Hyung-geun, head of the Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 1 at the Central District Prosecutors' Office, Oh Hyun-chul, head of the Investigation Division 1 at the Central District Prosecutors' Office, and Hyeong Jin-hwi, a prosecutor at the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office, are considered strong candidates for promotion. There is also talk that Kim Wook-jun, 4th Deputy Chief Prosecutor at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, may move to the 1st Deputy Chief Prosecutor position. All of them have more experience in criminal divisions than in special investigations.

Inside and outside the prosecution, the prevailing view is that if the personnel direction upheld by the Ministry of Justice so far materializes, a mass resignation of prosecutors will be inevitable. Minister Choo also stated at a press briefing held at the Gwacheon Government Complex in February, after the last mid-level executive reshuffle, that "there is no personnel reshuffle that satisfies 100% of people."

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