"Separation of Prosecution Investigation and Indictment Was First Advocated by Lenin... An Act of Constitutional Destruction" (Comprehensive)

Chinese-educated Chief Prosecutor Kim Seung-eon
"Prosecution has deteriorated into a legal supervisory body
Suitable for maintaining and strengthening China's one-party dictatorship
Criminal justice gaps and rule of law blind spots"
"Isn't it enough if the police do well?
It denies the principle of separation of powers"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] Kim Seung-eon, Deputy Chief Prosecutor of the Western District Prosecutors' Office (48, Judicial Research and Training Institute Class 33), who studied in China, stated in an interview with this publication on the 3rd, "The separation of investigation and prosecution views the prosecution as a legal supervisory body, a concept first advocated by the Russian socialist revolutionary Vladimir Lenin (1870?1924)." He added, "The current separation of investigation and prosecution is an act that destroys our constitution."

Deputy Chief Prosecutor Kim studied the Chinese prosecution system at East China University of Political Science and Law in Shanghai from 2014 to 2015. According to him, although the abolition of prosecution was discussed after the October Revolution in Russia in 1917, Lenin saw the prosecution as playing an important function and role in building a sound socialist legal supervisory system in the Soviet Union. He regarded the prosecution as a ‘legal supervisory’ body that monitors and manages investigations. Prosecution was seen as the result of legal supervision over investigations, and thus investigation and prosecution must be separated. This concept was directly inherited by China, whose constitution explicitly designates the prosecution as a legal supervisory body. China views ‘legal supervision’ as a fourth power, separate from both the administrative and judicial branches. In contrast, liberal democratic systems view prosecution’s investigation and prosecution functions from a judicial perspective, seeing it as the master of the criminal justice process. The prosecution must oversee the entire process from investigation to trial. Deputy Chief Prosecutor Kim said, "In this case, the argument for separating investigation and prosecution is impossible, but from the perspective of legal supervision, it is possible. From that viewpoint, (the Democratic Party’s claims and bills) can be understood."

However, Deputy Chief Prosecutor Kim said, "It is difficult to understand the attempt to separate investigation and prosecution given that our political system differs from China’s," adding, "China’s prosecution system is suitable for maintaining and strengthening a one-party dictatorship, but it could be a wrong choice as a reform measure for our prosecution system." He warned, "If we recklessly operate the prosecution like China, gaps?large and small?will occur in the criminal justice system, creating blind spots in the rule of law." He further noted, "The issue arises as to what role the prosecution can play during emergencies when the government or legislature oversteps their authority and undermines the rule of law." In China, the prosecution is only a legal supervisory body in such cases and has no authority to act proactively. The public security authorities handle everything.

Regarding the question, "Wouldn’t it be enough if the police do their job well?" Deputy Chief Prosecutor Kim responded, "This notion is based on a premise that denies the principle of separation of powers." He explained, "When the rule of law is undermined in the legislative or executive branches, the prosecution’s ability to conduct direct investigations and exercise state punitive power as part of the judiciary serves as a ‘judicial check and balance.’" He emphasized, "The separation of investigation and prosecution is a constitutional destruction act that distorts the essence of the current prosecution system into a legal supervisory body." He expressed hope, "I sincerely wish that future prosecution reforms will move away from the separation of investigation and prosecution and be reconsidered in a direction that maintains and strengthens the capacity to respond to increasingly diverse and complex crimes while efficiently eliminating only the side effects of the prosecution system."

Meanwhile, the amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act, which is part of the so-called ‘complete separation of investigation and prosecution’ (검수완박) bill, passed the plenary session of the National Assembly on the morning of the same day. Following the passage of the amendment to the Prosecutors’ Office Act on the 30th of last month, the passage of the Criminal Procedure Act amendment completed the legislative process for the 검수완박 bill pushed by the Democratic Party. At 2 p.m., a Cabinet meeting presided over by President Moon Jae-in is expected to be held at the Blue House to promulgate the 검수완박 bill.

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