Park Beom-gye "National Prosecutors' Meeting... Evaluates the Start of 'Internal Control' Discussions"

Minister of Justice Park Beom-gye / Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] Regarding the nationwide meeting of ordinary prosecutors held for the first time in 19 years in opposition to the Democratic Party's proposed 'Geomsu Wanbak (Complete Removal of Prosecutorial Investigation Rights)' law, Minister of Justice Park Beomgye evaluated, "It is meaningful in that the '(prosecutors') internal control' is now being discussed in earnest."

On the morning of the 20th, Minister Park met with reporters on his way to the Ministry of Justice Government Gwacheon Complex and said, "Our ordinary prosecutors met after work yesterday and discussed through the night. I have already received the announced discussion results," revealing this.

He said, "The essence is the 'fairness of investigation,' which the President also emphasized when meeting the Prosecutor General the day before yesterday, and which I have mentioned from the beginning," adding, "I evaluate that the statement by ordinary prosecutors explicitly mentioned internal control, where ordinary prosecutors are the main agents, as well as external control by the public." "I am also very interested and expect how this will affect the prosecution leadership," he added.

The previous day, 207 ordinary prosecutors nationwide held a nationwide meeting until dawn. The ordinary prosecutors announced the meeting results at 9 a.m. that day, stating, "The Geomsu Wanbak bill arbitrarily interprets the Constitution to completely strip prosecutors of their investigation rights and direct warrant application rights, while even recognizing the police's direct warrant application rights, which has a high possibility of violating the Constitution."

They also emphasized, "The ordinary prosecutors will take the lead in introducing various systems that can guarantee the fairness and neutrality of the prosecution, such as external control devices allowing the public to participate in the investigation process of serious crimes, and internal checks and balances like the ordinary prosecutors' representative meetings where representatives regularly discuss."

Regarding internal control measures, Minister Park said, "Because the issue of fairness in investigations was prominently raised around the last presidential election, I have repeatedly stated the essence of the current discussion on the separation of investigation and prosecution," and added, "Shouldn't there be some indication that stakeholders in so-called 'high-profile serious cases' can raise objections?"

He continued, "If objections are raised, as the ordinary prosecutors say, someone should review them," adding, "It does not necessarily have to be the ordinary prosecutors, but there must be an institutional mechanism, and the media can also play a role as a social public sphere. It depends on how it is designed."

Meanwhile, regarding concerns expressed by the Supreme Court's Judicial Administration Office and former presidents of the Korean Bar Association about the Geomsu Wanbak bill, Minister Park said, "Looking at their statements, they did not definitively say it is 'unconstitutional,'" adding, "The Judicial Administration Office is aware of the gravity of this issue, so they cannot speak so definitively."

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