[Exclusive] Incumbent Prosecutor: "'Geomsu Wanbak' Is a Bill That Shakes the Foundation of the Criminal Justice System"

'Minju Chulsin' Independent Yang Hyang-ja Reassigned to Legislation and Judiciary Committee... Concerns Over Agenda Coordination Paralysis
Chief Prosecutor Kwon Sang-dae: "Regrettable Situation of Unfavorable Public Appeals to Lawmakers"

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Kyung-jun] A current prosecutor in charge of overseeing criminal justice system matters, including the adjustment of investigative authority at the prosecution, criticized the Democratic Party’s push for ‘Geomsu Wanbak (Complete Removal of Prosecution’s Investigative Authority)’ as a "bill that shakes the foundation of the criminal justice system."

Kwon Sang-dae, Director of Policy Planning at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office (age 46, Judicial Research and Training Institute class 32, Chief Prosecutor), posted on the prosecution’s internal network on the 8th, stating, "I want to share the situation and concerns regarding Geomsu Wanbak." Director Kwon has handled legislative affairs while serving in the Ministry of Justice’s Criminal Legislation Division, the Prosecution Bureau’s Prosecution Division, and as Director of Public Security Planning.

Director Kwon explained, "The core of the Geomsu Wanbak bill is the abolition of the prosecution’s investigative authority and the establishment of a Serious Crime Investigation Agency. However, the complicated and costly establishment of the Serious Crime Investigation Agency is being deferred, and the argument to first abolish the prosecution’s investigative authority alone is gaining traction." He added, "The abolition of the prosecution’s investigative authority could be implemented by deleting provisions in the Criminal Procedure Act and the Prosecution Office Act that assume the prosecutor’s investigative authority, centered on Article 196 of the Criminal Procedure Act."

He continued, "I will not repeat in detail the points that the new system has only been in effect for one year and should be stabilized, that it will only increase public inconvenience, that it will weaken the response to serious crimes, or that there is a risk of police abuse of power by holding both information and investigations."

He further stated, "It is truly regrettable and I feel guilty as a practitioner that the harsh reality is that a bill that would hollow out 70 years of prosecution history and shake the foundation of the criminal justice system can be passed within a month if the ruling party decides to do so, and that we, the members of the prosecution, have no choice but to plead again to lawmakers and appeal to the unfavorable public opinion."

He also questioned, "I want to ask whether this bill and the deliberation process are truly permissible under our Constitution and the National Assembly Act, whether it helps protect our families safely from crime, and whether it brings us closer to a society where common sense and conscience are respected."

On the previous day, National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seok transferred Yang Hyang-ja, an independent lawmaker formerly of the Democratic Party, to the Legislation and Judiciary Committee. Park Seong-jun, a Democratic Party lawmaker who was a member of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, was swapped to the Strategy and Finance Committee. The Legislation and Judiciary Committee has 18 members: 11 from the Democratic Party, 6 from the People Power Party, and 1 from a minor party. However, after the merger of the Democratic Party and the Open Democratic Party in January, lawmaker Choi Kang-wook changed affiliation to the Democratic Party, changing the composition to 12 Democratic Party members and 6 People Power Party members.

Regarding this, Director Kwon said, "I heard about the committee member swap around the end of the workday. If more than one-third of the total members request it for a contentious agenda, an agenda adjustment committee is formed, and if two-thirds or more approve, the subcommittee review is considered complete." He expressed concern, "With this swap, it is highly likely the composition will be 3 Democratic Party, 2 People Power Party, and 1 independent member. If the Democratic Party and the independent member share the same opinion on the bill, the Democratic Party + independent 4 members versus People Power Party 2 members will meet the two-thirds approval requirement, resulting in the subcommittee review being concluded, and the plenary and general assembly schedules could follow within a month."

He added, "I understand the explanation that the member swap was not intended for handling contentious bills like Geomsu Wanbak. However, there have been cases where similar member swaps in the past, such as with the Corruption Investigation Office Act, Carbon Neutrality Act, Private School Act, and Media Arbitration Act, have neutralized agenda adjustment committees. I sincerely want to believe that this swap is not for that purpose, but I cannot help but have other thoughts."

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