Moon Accepts Prosecutor General Kim Oh-soo's Resignation

Deputy Prosecutor General and High Prosecutor Officials
Other Executives' Resignations Rejected
Minister Park Beom-gye's Farewell Ceremony Today
"Mixed Emotions... Countless Hardships"

Prosecutor General Kim Oh-soo held a press conference on the 25th at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office in Seocho-gu, Seoul, and expressed his position regarding the compromise proposal on the complete removal of prosecution investigation powers agreed upon by the ruling and opposition parties. Photo by Moon Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporters Kim Hyung-min and Heo Kyung-jun] President Moon Jae-in accepted the resignation of Prosecutor General Kim Oh-soo, who had expressed opposition to the so-called ‘complete prosecution investigation reform bill’ on the 6th. However, the resignations of other executives, including Deputy Prosecutor General Park Sung-jin and six high prosecutors across the country, were rejected.

Accordingly, the person appointed by President-elect Yoon Seok-youl and Justice Minister nominee Han Dong-hoon is expected to lead the prosecution organization amid the prosecution investigation reform situation.

Prosecutor General Kim suddenly submitted his resignation on the 17th of last month after the Democratic Party of Korea proposed the prosecution investigation reform bill. President Moon rejected the resignation, urging him to fulfill his term and do his best while the legislative process was ongoing in the National Assembly. After a mediation plan related to the prosecution investigation reform was reached, Kim submitted his resignation again five days later. Since then, he has been on leave and has not reported to work since the 26th of last month. Instead, Deputy Park took over as acting Prosecutor General and began efforts to block the reform bill.

However, on the 3rd, the prosecution investigation reform bill, which gradually abolishes the prosecution’s investigative authority, passed the Cabinet meeting. When news spread that Prosecutor General Kim planned to hold his retirement ceremony, members of the prosecution strongly opposed it, and the event was eventually canceled.

The prosecution is currently operating under Deputy Park’s acting Prosecutor General authority. This is the second time a Prosecutor General appointed by the current administration has stepped down mid-term, following the resignation of President-elect Yoon last year. Within the prosecution, it is widely expected that Deputy Park and other high prosecutors who had already submitted resignations during the reform phase will submit their resignations again after President-elect Yoon’s inauguration. In that case, frontline district prosecutors corresponding to Judicial Research and Training Institute classes 25 to 27 are likely to be considered candidates for Prosecutor General. The Justice Minister can form a candidate recommendation committee consisting of nine members, including ▲those who have served as prosecutors at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office level or higher or have high social trust ▲the head of the Ministry of Justice’s prosecution bureau ▲the deputy director of the Court Administration Office ▲the president of the Korean Bar Association ▲the president of the Korean Law Professors Association ▲the chairman of the Law School Council ▲and three experts from various fields without lawyer qualifications. The recommendation committee will propose a pool of three or more candidates, from which the Justice Minister will recommend one to the President, who will then appoint the candidate after a National Assembly confirmation hearing.

Justice Minister Park Beom-gye will hold a farewell ceremony at 5 p.m. today in the Ministry of Justice’s main conference room. It has been one year and five months since his inauguration on February 1 last year. He was the fourth Justice Minister under the Moon Jae-in administration, following Park Sang-ki, Cho Kuk, and Choo Mi-ae. On his way to work today, Minister Park told reporters, “There were spicy and bitter moments, but sometimes I was happy. Mixed feelings are crossing my mind,” and added, “The phrase ‘thousands of hardships’ (千辛萬苦) comes to mind.” He continued, “Nothing has been finalized regarding future plans yet. Anyway, I will do well.” The Ministry of Justice is expected to be operated temporarily under the acting leadership of Deputy Minister Kang Sung-guk. Han Dong-hoon, deputy head of the Judicial Research and Training Institute and the successor to Minister Park as the first Justice Minister of the new government, has been nominated and is scheduled for a confirmation hearing in the National Assembly on the 9th.

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