National Police Agency Expresses Partial Revision Opinions on the 'Public Corruption Investigation Office Act Amendment'... "Not Opposed to the Purpose of the Law"

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-ju] It has been confirmed that the National Police Agency expressed some negative opinions regarding the amendment to the "Act on the Establishment and Operation of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO)" submitted to the National Assembly.

On the 5th, the National Police Agency issued a statement saying, "We have actively cooperated to ensure the smooth launch of the CIO and do not oppose the overall intent of the recently proposed amendment to the CIO Act. However, based on the principle of 'checks and balances,' we submitted revision suggestions on some provisions to the National Assembly’s Legislation and Judiciary Committee."

According to the National Police Agency, on the 1st of last month, the Legislation and Judiciary Committee of the National Assembly requested institutional opinions on the CIO Act amendment bill, which was primarily proposed by Kim Yong-min, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea. In response, the National Police Agency submitted revision suggestions on certain provisions.

First, the National Police Agency pointed out concerns about monopolization by a specific investigative agency regarding the provision in the amendment that deletes the clause including investigators dispatched from the prosecution in the CIO investigators' quota.

Additionally, the agency expressed a negative stance on the insertion of a clause that mandates immediate compliance with CIO’s requests for investigative cooperation, stating that it could infringe on the discretionary authority of administrative agencies. The police suggested that a proviso such as "unless there is a justifiable reason" should be included.

Lastly, the National Police Agency opined that adding "police officers of rank superintendent or higher" to the provision establishing institutional measures allowing the CIO and prosecution to mutually investigate crimes committed by each other's prosecutors as a check-and-balance mechanism is inconsistent with the purpose of the CIO Act.

The National Police Agency stated, "We will continue to do our best to ensure the smooth launch of the CIO."

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