Lee Jae-myung: "The Prosecution Should Investigate, Not Keep Politicizing"

Lee Hwa-young Criticizes Prosecution Over 'Funds Transfer to North Korea' Testimony Report
Party Human Rights and Legal Committees Say "Prosecution's Investigation Is Inhumane and Fabricated"

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, criticized the prosecution on the 19th regarding the investigation into former Gyeonggi Province Deputy Governor for Peace Lee Hwa-young, who is suspected of being involved in Ssangbangwool Group's remittance to North Korea, saying, "The prosecution should be conducting an investigation, but it seems they are constantly engaging in politics."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the same day, after the on-site Supreme Council meeting held in Andong, Gyeongbuk, Lee responded this way to reporters' questions about the 'report on former Deputy Governor Lee's statement to the prosecution related to the Ssangbangwool North Korea remittance suspicion.'

According to the legal community on that day, former Deputy Governor Lee reportedly testified to the prosecution that "he requested Ssangbangwool's cooperation for the governor's North Korea visit promotion expenses and reported the related matters to Lee Jae-myung."

The Ssangbangwool North Korea remittance suspicion involves former Ssangbangwool Group Chairman Kim Seong-tae allegedly paying $8 million to North Korea on behalf of Gyeonggi Province's smart farm project funds and the then-Gyeonggi Governor Lee Jae-myung's North Korea visit expenses at the request of former Deputy Governor Lee. The former Deputy Governor's side has consistently denied any involvement in Ssangbangwool's remittance to North Korea. However, by testifying that he reported the North Korea visit expenses in advance to Lee, the prosecution is reportedly investigating whether Lee was also informed about the remaining expenses.

In response, the Democratic Party strongly criticized the prosecution for coercing and pressuring former Deputy Governor Lee to give false statements.

Joo Cheol-hyun, chairman of the Democratic Party's Human Rights Committee, and Kim Seung-won, chairman of the Legal Committee, held a press conference at the National Assembly Communication Office on the same day, stating, "We will reveal the truth behind the prosecution's anti-human rights and fabricated investigation against former Deputy Governor Lee," and announced that they had received a handwritten petition from former Deputy Governor Lee's spouse detailing the prosecution's atrocities.

Regarding the petition, they claimed, "The prosecution is desperate to frame 'payment of North Korea visit expenses' and involve Lee Jae-myung," adding, "In addition to former Chairman Kim Seong-tae's unilateral fabricated testimony, the fact that the prosecution is coercing and pressuring former Deputy Governor Lee to give false statements is shocking in itself."

They continued, "The prosecution has subjected former Deputy Governor Lee to nearly 10 months of solitary confinement after his arrest, exhausting him with daily summons and interrogations, while simultaneously employing threats and coercion," and added, "We have confirmed that the prosecution does not hesitate to conduct anti-human rights fabricated investigations as severe as torture."

They emphasized, "If the contents of the petition are true, the prosecution has solely focused on acting as a personal guard unit to eliminate political opponents of the president, conducting anti-human rights and illegal fabricated investigations," and stated, "This is absolutely unacceptable."

Furthermore, they said, "The party's Human Rights Committee and Legal Committee will promptly investigate the truth of the petition's contents," and "If confirmed to be true, we will hold the prosecution accountable for their anti-human rights behavior and distortion of truth as mere henchmen of the Yoon Seok-youl administration, and propose official party-level responses to the leadership."

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