Corruption Investigation Office Begins Final Appointment Process... Director Kim Emphasizes "Neutrality and Fairness Are Important"

[Asia Economy Reporter Bae Kyunghwan] The High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Unit (HCIC) has begun its final selection process. It has decided to select the final pool of candidates to be appointed as ordinary prosecutors and chief prosecutors at the end of this month and early next month, respectively. The Personnel Committee will recommend candidates who have passed the verification process to the President within twice the number of planned hires, and the President will make the final appointments.

According to the legal community on the 13th, the HCIC will start prosecutor interviews next week and complete the formation of the investigation team by the 2nd of next month. This schedule was decided at the first Personnel Committee meeting held the previous day at the Government Gwacheon Complex. Interviews for prosecutors will be conducted from the 17th to the 24th, followed by the selection of prosecutor candidates through the second Personnel Committee meeting on the 26th. Interviews for chief prosecutors will be held on the 30th and 31st, with an additional Personnel Committee meeting on the 2nd of next month to select chief prosecutor candidates.

The meeting was attended by all seven Personnel Committee members, including Director Kim Jin-wook, Deputy Director Yeo Woon-guk, ruling party recommended lawyers Na Ki-ju and Oh Young-jung, opposition party recommended lawyers Yoo Il-jun and Kim Young-jong, and Director-appointed Lee Young-joo, head of the Human Rights Counseling Center at Seoul National University’s Human Rights Center. The meeting was held privately for about 1 hour and 40 minutes.

Director Kim told reporters, "The party-recommended members also said that political neutrality and fairness are the most important, and we think so too." When asked whether this means they will not select lawyers affiliated with organizations of a particular political inclination, he explained, "That is not the case, but it will be considered," adding, "We do not quantify political neutrality or include it in the evaluation form."

It is known that there were no disagreements among the Personnel Committee members. Yoo Il-jun, an opposition party recommended lawyer, said, "There were no disagreements among the members, and the discussion was at the level of setting basic principles for personnel standards." Lee Young-joo, the Director-appointed head of the Human Rights Counseling Center at Seoul National University, also responded to a question about whether there was a unified atmosphere regarding the prosecutor selection criteria by saying, "There were no particular disagreements."

The Personnel Committee plans to conduct further verification after receiving the interview results. According to the HCIC Act, among the 25 prosecutors including the Director and Deputy Director, those with a prosecutor background cannot exceed half. However, Director Kim has stated that he intends to select as many prosecutors as possible.

Meanwhile, before the Personnel Committee meeting, Director Kim attracted attention by citing the story of "Baeknak (伯樂)" from the Chinese Spring and Autumn period. Director Kim said, "Baeknak of the Chinese Spring and Autumn period was said to have the eye to recognize a thousand-li horse. The HCIC Personnel Committee will also play a role like Baeknak in supporting outstanding and talented individuals to find positions that match their abilities," adding, "Although it is the first meeting, I hope it will be a meeting that produces practical results."

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