Dongbu District Prosecutors' Office Briefed Without Summoning Witnesses... Background Tied to Prosecution Reform Law

'Industry Ministry Blacklist' Allegations
Promotion of Investigation Necessity Related to Regime
Intent to Oppose Prosecution Reform Through Public Opinion Campaign

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Sehee] The Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office, which is investigating the 'Ministry of Industry Blacklist' case, held a briefing on the 12th that can be summarized as denying 'political retaliation' while opposing 'prosecutorial reform' (검수완박). It is interpreted as an attempt to inform the public of the legitimacy of investigations related to the administration that the Democratic Party of Korea pushed forward with prosecutorial reform and to create public opinion against the reform.

On the same day, the Eastern District Prosecutors' Office told reporters through the 'Investigation Progress on the Abuse of Personnel Authority at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy' document, "It is completely untrue that the investigation was initiated after the presidential election by taking the case out of the cabinet or that it is a retaliatory investigation with political intent." They cited the Supreme Court's final ruling on the Ministry of Environment blacklist and the return of a key accused after a three-year overseas assignment as reasons for the investigation delay. It is unusual for the prosecution to disclose detailed progress of the investigation and directly clarify controversies before even summoning the suspects for questioning.

Chief Prosecutor Shim Woo-jung of the Eastern District Prosecutors' Office, who directly held the briefing, said about prosecutorial reform, "It is a concern that the total capacity to investigate corruption will decrease," adding, "Whether that is right or not should be judged by the public." He added, "If someone says not to proceed with an investigation just because a certain person became president, wouldn't that be an abuse of power?" While mentioning that disruptions to the case are inevitable if the prosecutorial reform legislation is passed, he stated that the investigation is currently proceeding according to law and principles. Earlier, Yoon Ho-jung, the Democratic Party's Emergency Response Committee Chairman, criticized on the 28th of last month, saying, "The Eastern District Prosecutors' Office conducted a search of the Ministry of Industry that the public cannot accept," and "There is great public concern that this is the beginning of prosecutorial dictatorship seizing government control through government-commissioned investigations."

It appears that the prosecution will accelerate corruption investigations such as the 'Ministry of Industry Blacklist' case to justify the investigation. A prosecution official said, "This briefing was held because it was judged necessary to inform the public of the substantive truth related to the case," and "The Ministry of Industry Blacklist case will be investigated promptly according to law and principles." In this regard, the Eastern District Prosecutors' Office has mostly completed the analysis of seized materials and plans to conduct summons investigations as early as this week.

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