Prosecutor General's Office Prepares to Persuade National Assembly to Block 'Geomsu Wanbak' Mediation Proposal... Even Sacrificing Holidays

by Kim HyeongMin

Published 24 Apr.2022 20:18(KST)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] It is reported that the prosecution has begun preparing to persuade the National Assembly to block Speaker Park Byeong-seok's 'complete removal of prosecution's investigative authority' (검수완박) mediation plan.

According to the legal community on the 24th, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office is preparing response materials to convey opinions to the National Assembly, led by Deputy Prosecutor General Park Seong-jin, replacing Prosecutor General Kim Oh-soo who submitted his resignation.

Deputy Prosecutor General Park also submitted a joint resignation along with six high prosecutors as a form of protest, but it has not yet been accepted. It is also reported that Deputy Prosecutor General Park, acting as the interim Prosecutor General, has expressed to those around him his intention to do his utmost to prevent the bill from passing according to the mediation plan.

Supreme Prosecutors' Office staff came to the office on Saturday, the previous day, to analyze the problems of Speaker Park's mediation plan and organize directions for revision. First, regarding Article 4 of the mediation plan, which prohibits investigations that deviate from the 'unity and identity of the crime' when the prosecution investigates cases transferred by the police, they hold the position that the words 'unity and identity' should be deleted. They are concerned that if the bill passes as is, investigations to identify the principal offender, accomplices, and additional damages in cases such as voice phishing or multi-level marketing fraud will be impossible, causing harm to the public.

The Supreme Prosecutors' Office believes it would be better to clearly define the concept of 'separate investigations' in the Prosecutors' Office Act and create specific provisions to prohibit separate investigations during supplementary investigations.

Additionally, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office has summarized the problems that would arise if election crimes are excluded from the prosecution's direct investigation targets. Since the statute of limitations for election cases is short at six months, removing the prosecution's direct investigative authority could result in many election offenders escaping prosecution.

The Supreme Prosecutors' Office plans to compile opinions from each department into response materials and deliver them to the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee via the Ministry of Justice.

Prosecutor General Kim Oh-soo, who resigned in protest against Speaker Park's mediation plan, will hold a press conference on the 25th to state his position on the mediation plan. At the same time, he is expected to directly clarify internal suspicions within the prosecution that he may have sympathized with Speaker Park's mediation plan.