'Geomsu Wanbak' Supreme Prosecutors' Office Public Hearing... Experts Say "Hasty Legal Amendments Should Not Harm Innocent Citizens"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] Legal experts gathered on the 22nd at the "Public Hearing on the Bill to Abolish Prosecutorial Investigation Functions," hosted by the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, to express unanimous concern that "hasty legal amendments could harm the public" regarding the 'Geomsu Wanbak' (complete removal of prosecutorial investigation rights) bill currently under discussion in the National Assembly. They also voiced practical opposition to the mediation proposal by National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seok, agreed upon by the Democratic Party and the People Power Party.

At 2 p.m. that day, at the annex of the National Digital Forensic Center (NDFC) of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, Jeong Woong-seok, president of the Korean Criminal Procedure Law Association, said in his opening remarks, "Since the adjustment of investigative rights between the prosecution and police implemented early last year, many issues such as refusal to accept cases and delays in processing have been pointed out in practice, and solutions have yet to be established," adding, "however, the National Assembly is trying to hastily amend the law without even holding a single public hearing to gather opinions from various sectors, so this public hearing was held with the thought that the Supreme Prosecutors' Office needs at least one proper opportunity for discussion."

Prosecutor Cha Hodong of Daegu District Prosecutors' Office emphasized, "A bill that fundamentally changes the criminal justice system maintained for decades is being rushed within just two weeks, and academia, civic groups, and the legal community are all pointing out problems with the bill itself or procedural issues."

He said, "The Geomsu Wanbak bill is like a neighborhood clinic doctor concluding 'it's nothing serious' once, and then the patient can never receive another examination at a general hospital or anywhere else," adding, "It is worrisome in that it blocks patients from going to general hospitals for examinations and effectively shuts their doors."

Professor Kim Seong-ryong of Kyungpook National University Law School said, "(The Democratic Party side) still insists that countries where prosecutors conduct both investigation and prosecution are rare except for our prosecution, but if the amendment was made based on such a misunderstanding, it is truly regrettable," emphasizing, "The fact is that as of 2016, among 46 countries including Scotland, Wales, Israel, and Morocco, prosecutors in 38 countries supervise or directly conduct police investigations."

Regarding Speaker Park's mediation proposal, Professor Kim also said, "It's an even more ridiculous story," criticizing that the fundamental problem remains unchanged. The mediation proposal drastically reduces the scope of prosecutorial investigation initiation, currently limited to 'six major crimes' such as corruption, economic crimes, public officials, elections, defense projects, and major disasters under Article 4, Paragraph 1 of the Prosecutors' Office Act, to only two: corruption and economic crimes. It also stipulates that prosecutorial direct investigation rights are 'temporary' and includes provisions to abolish direct investigation rights once other investigative agencies reach a certain level of crime response capability.

Attorney Kim Yewon of the Center for Disability Rights said, "Even minimal supplementary investigations by prosecutors regarding civil and common people's cases, which are unrelated to the prosecution's special investigations (direct prosecutorial recognition investigations) that have had serious side effects, may become completely impossible," adding, "Rather than causing great confusion in the criminal justice system, measures such as restoring prosecutorial supervision rights (investigation control rights) over all police investigations should be taken to ensure that there are no unjust victims or suspects."

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