Handonghun "Prosecutor Reform Law, Forced Legislation... Institutional Loopholes Arise"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] Han Dong-hoon, the nominee for Minister of Justice, who is preparing for the National Assembly confirmation hearing, reiterated his stance of "not agreeing" to the 'Geomsu Wanbak' (complete removal of prosecutorial investigation rights) bill.

On the 4th, in the hearing response materials secured by Rep. Yang Hyang-ja's office of the International Legislation and Judiciary Committee, Han stated, "The reckless legislative push for the Geomsu Wanbak bill has created institutional loopholes where criminals can commit crimes without punishment, and only powerless citizens suffer."

He continued, "If the prosecution's direct supplementary investigations or requests for supplementary investigations are abolished, case processing will be delayed and responsibility will become unclear," adding, "The capacity to respond to serious crimes will also decline, and investigations into those with power will become impossible, resulting in harm being passed on to ordinary citizens."

Furthermore, Han pointed out that there is no reason or justification to suddenly strip the prosecution of its investigative functions while new criminal justice systems, such as the adjustment of investigative rights between the prosecution and police and the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Office, have not yet been established.

He emphasized, "In a situation where the stabilization of new criminal justice systems and the resolution of public inconvenience are urgent tasks, changing the foundation of the system again could cause enormous inconvenience to the public."

He added, "Ultimately, the ones who suffer the most from Geomsu Wanbak are the citizens," and stated, "We will organize practical systems to minimize such damage and carefully review and respond with all possible means."

Han also expressed concerns about the ruling party's plan to gradually abolish prosecutorial investigative rights entirely and replace them by establishing the Serious Crime Investigation Office. He argued, "Establishing the Serious Crime Investigation Office and stripping the prosecution of its investigative functions is effectively a law to abolish the Prosecutor's Office," and said, "In a situation where the prosecution's investigative command function has been lost due to the adjustment of investigative rights, even the necessary and minimal prosecutorial investigative functions are being removed."

He mentioned that among the 35 OECD countries, 27 recognize the prosecutor's investigative functions by constitution or law, criticizing, "Institutionally banning prosecutors, who are the nation's legal officers, from conducting investigations is unprecedented in advanced legal systems."

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