Government Vetoes Double Special Investigation Act... Prime Minister Han Calls It a Bill That Undermines Neutrality and Fairness

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo is speaking at the extraordinary Cabinet meeting held at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the morning of the 5th.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The so-called 'double special prosecution bills,' including the Kim Geon-hee Special Prosecution Act and the Daejang-dong 5 Billion Club Special Prosecution Act, were approved for reconsideration at the extraordinary Cabinet meeting on the 5th. Prime Minister Han Deok-soo described these bills as "legislation that could undermine neutrality and fairness," adding that it was "regrettable and unfortunate."

At 9 a.m. that day, Prime Minister Han presided over the extraordinary Cabinet meeting, reviewed both the original double special prosecution bills and the reconsideration request, and approved the reconsideration request.

In his opening remarks, Prime Minister Han stated, "These two special prosecution bills were unilaterally pushed through by the opposition party without sufficient consultation between the ruling and opposition parties, granting the opposition exclusive authority to recommend special prosecutors," adding, "under such circumstances, it is difficult to expect political neutrality and fair investigations from the appointed special prosecutors."

He continued, "In particular, the 5 Billion Club Special Prosecution Act could obstruct the ongoing prosecution investigations through a pro-opposition special prosecutor, potentially leading to results far from uncovering the substantive truth," and "the special prosecution period overlaps with the election period, and briefings on investigation status can be held frequently up to the election day, raising serious concerns about political neutrality being compromised and directly influencing the election."

Prime Minister Han said, "special prosecutors are an exceptional system introduced despite the constitutional principle of separation of powers," and "however, the cases targeted by these two special prosecution bills have already undergone sufficient investigation since the previous administration, with some trials already in progress, which does not align with the purpose of introducing the special prosecution system."

He added, "we cannot help but question whether these two special prosecution bills, which contain several serious issues, are truly intended to uncover the substantive truth," and "if these bills are enacted, they could rather affect fair elections, hinder the people's precious right to vote, and only cause confusion in state affairs."

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