"May Grant Immunity for Abuse of Power" Lawyer Public Interest Group Issues Statement Opposing 'Prosecutor's Complete Control Reform'

The official lawyer organization "People Who Make Good Laws" issued a statement on the 10th opposing the Democratic Party of Korea's ongoing push for "Geomsu Wanbak" (Complete Removal of Prosecutorial Investigation Rights).

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[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Se-eun] A group of lawyers criticized the 'complete removal of prosecution's investigative authority (Geomsu Wanbak)' as "an attempt to collapse the criminal justice system all at once based solely on political calculations."

The public interest lawyer group 'People Making Good Laws' stated in a press release on the 10th, "If investigative authority is given to the police and the Serious Crime Investigation Agency without any checks, it will be difficult for investigations to be independent from political power and capital."

The group added, "Due to the adjustment of investigative authority between the prosecution and police carried out early in the Moon Jae-in administration, the prosecution now directly investigates only six types of crimes including corruption, and can only request supplementary investigations from the police," and "On the front lines, due to the police's lack of capability and expertise, investigations are delayed and there are many cases of unexplained non-prosecution decisions, causing strong complaints from crime victims."

They further expressed, "Considering that the police still cannot properly conduct investigations into major crimes, stripping the prosecution of its investigative authority could result in granting impunity to serious crimes and abuse of power."

Moreover, they explained, "A criminal justice system where investigative and prosecutorial powers are completely separated does not exist anywhere in the world, and it is also inconsistent with the tradition of our country, which follows the civil law system."

The civil law system refers to the codified legal system centered in continental Europe, such as Germany and France, which emphasizes statutes themselves rather than case law, unlike the common law system. Unlike common law countries, most civil law countries grant both prosecutorial and investigative authority to the prosecution.

Meanwhile, 'People Making Good Laws' is an organization led by former Korean Bar Association President Kim Hyun as the standing representative, consisting of 227 lawyers and 18 citizens.

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