Park Beom-gye "Minister of Justice's investigation control authority not yet abolished"... Counterattack against Yoon and the Supreme Prosecutors' Office

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] Park Beom-gye, Minister of Justice, has repeatedly expressed opposition to the abolition of the investigative authority. This stance is effectively a counter to the position of President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol, who has pledged to abolish the investigative authority of the Minister of Justice, and the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, which has shown support for this.

On the 23rd, at a brief press briefing, Minister Park emphasized, "The investigative authority of the Minister of Justice is based on democratic control over the prosecution and the principle of responsible administration," adding, "The position that the investigative authority is still necessary remains unchanged."

He continued, "The more important issue is how to guarantee the political neutrality and fairness of the prosecution," and stated, "If these aspects are institutionally established and the organizational culture of the prosecution is improved accordingly, the issue of investigative authority will naturally be resolved."

Regarding President-elect Yoon's pledge to grant the prosecution independent budgetary authority, he said, "There are issues related to transparency and supervision of expenditures such as special activity funds, as well as the need to adjust the organizational structure of the Ministry of Justice's prosecution bureau, which holds budgetary authority," adding, "I believe this requires legislation."

On the expansion of direct investigations by the prosecution, he explained, "Just because the prosecution conducts more investigations does not mean it is beneficial for the prosecution," and added, "We have been leading organizational reforms to reduce direct investigations in order to firmly establish the prosecution as a dignified quasi-judicial institution in the eyes of the public."

Minister Park's remarks have drawn increased attention ahead of the Ministry of Justice and prosecution's report to the Presidential Transition Committee scheduled for the 24th. His position conflicts entirely with the content of the transition committee report previously prepared by the Supreme Prosecutors' Office.

Before the transition committee report, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office recently conveyed President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol's judicial policy pledges to the Ministry of Justice. It is reported that the Supreme Prosecutors' Office supports the pledge to abolish the Minister of Justice's investigative authority over specific cases and proposes transferring the budget organization within the Ministry of Justice's prosecution bureau to the Supreme Prosecutors' Office to grant the Prosecutor General independent budgetary authority. There is also a claim advocating for expanding the scope of direct investigations by the prosecution.

Minister Park said, "It is somewhat natural for the prosecution to say, 'We will conduct investigations well, so please do not interfere,'" adding, "Therefore, how to guarantee the fairness of the prosecution is even more important."

Meanwhile, Minister Park reiterated the necessity of a special prosecutor for the Daejang-dong scandal. He stated, "A new government is being launched, and we cannot continue divisive public debates on this issue (Daejang-dong scandal)," adding, "Individual special prosecutors or permanent special prosecutors are worth considering," and argued, "A special prosecutor can be one way to maintain the political neutrality of the prosecution."

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