President Yoon's 2nd Anniversary Press Conference: Will He Address Allegations Against Chae Sang-byeong and First Lady Kim Geon-hee?

President Yoon Suk-yeol's announcement on the 9th of a press conference marking his 2nd anniversary in office has led opposition parties, including the Democratic Party of Korea, to pressure him to express willingness to accept special investigation laws concerning First Lady Kim Keon-hee and Sergeant Chae Sang-byeong, which have become the biggest political issues. On the other hand, the ruling party countered by saying, "This is merely political strife aimed at obstructing the president's governance."

President Yoon Suk-yeol. [Image source=Yonhap News]

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Park Chan-dae, newly elected floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, appeared on KBS Radio's 'Jeon Jong-cheol's Jeonggyeok Sisa' on the 7th and commented on Prosecutor General Lee Won-seok's order to investigate First Lady Kim Keon-hee's luxury handbag allegations, saying, "I think it is too late," and pointed out, "The important thing is that because the timing was missed, criticism of political prosecution cannot be avoided."

Park, the new floor leader, said, "In the case of the Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung's wife, even the meal cost of 78,000 won for three people, which she neither approved nor knew about, was subject to over 100 searches and prosecution," adding, "It is regrettable that the case involving the 3 million won luxury handbag, which the entire nation watched through videos, was not clearly clarified whether it was a matter that could resolve public suspicion or if it was related to official duties."

He continued, "Many people are currently speculating whether Prosecutor General Lee Won-seok's order to investigate the luxury handbag allegations is a cover-up for a special investigation or a counterattack by Han Dong-hoon's faction," and argued, "Whether the prosecution truly has the will to investigate will soon become clear as the investigation proceeds." He added, "One thing I want to ask the Prosecutor General is that if he tries to deceive the public with shallow tactics, he will face strong resistance," emphasizing, "I hope he conducts a strict investigation to uphold justice and uncover suspicions and corruption."

The opposition has raised suspicions that Prosecutor General Lee might conduct some level of investigation or conclude the investigation into First Lady Kim Keon-hee before the special investigation law is passed, so-called 'promise collusion' or 'inadequate investigation.' On the previous evening's CBS Radio program 'Park Jae-hong's Hanpan Seungbu,' Park said regarding Lee's order for a 'swift investigation,' "The public is keenly watching whether this marks a new tension between the presidential office and the prosecution or is merely an attempt to divert attention." He stated, "The pastor who gave the luxury handbag said, 'When I went, several people were lined up holding gifts.' Whether this statement is false or true needs to be examined," adding, "We need to see if it was a one-time incident where he got unlucky or if it was a case of receiving gifts multiple times and getting caught once. In my view, the latter is a more reasonable inference." He further said, "According to the legal principles President Yoon established during his time as a prosecutor, President Yoon and First Lady Kim are an economic community," and stressed, "A thorough investigation is necessary to determine whether this constitutes bribery, and that would be a fair investigation in line with public sentiment."

Yang Bu-nam, a former Busan High Prosecutor and newly elected Democratic Party representative for Gwangju Seo-gu Eul (22nd Judicial Research and Training Institute class), argued that it is virtually impossible for prosecutors to confront the president, who holds personnel authority, due to the nature of the prosecution. In an interview with MBC Radio's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus' on the 7th, Yang said, "For the past five months, there was no investigation into the luxury handbag case, but as the 22nd National Assembly opened with a ruling party minority and declining government approval ratings, the investigation order was issued at a time when the possibility of a special investigation for First Lady Kim Keon-hee was high," adding, "There is suspicion that this is a shield against the special investigation or an attempt to divert attention."

Regarding internal conflicts within the prosecution, he said, "The biggest concern for prosecutors is personnel, and the president exercises the prosecution personnel authority," and added, "There are talks that some prosecutors are showing strength centered around Han Dong-hoon as the acting chairman, but for Han to influence the prosecution, he would have to become president in three years. Do prosecutors follow future power that will be president in three years? Conflict with the current president who holds personnel authority? Would anyone shorten their own career and leave the prosecution? I find it hard to believe."

On the other hand, the People Power Party drew a line against such opposition claims, calling them "political strife for the sake of political strife." On the same day, Song Seok-jun, a People Power Party lawmaker, appeared on YTN Radio's 'News Fighting with Bae Seung-hee' and argued, "The special investigation laws currently being discussed, such as the one concerning Sergeant Chae Sang-byeong or First Lady Kim Keon-hee, seem to be political strife aimed at obstructing the president's governance."

Song said, "Special investigations should be conducted when necessary," adding, "From the public's perspective, if there were investigations into certain suspicions but they were insufficient or if various suspicions arise, it is natural for the ruling and opposition parties to unite to create special investigation laws and conduct special investigations to properly uncover the truth." He continued, "However, the special investigation laws currently advocated by the opposition concern matters where investigations are still ongoing," emphasizing, "In such cases, the political sphere should support thorough investigations and encourage proper investigations if there are shortcomings."

He added, "If later the results are truly insufficient or many suspicions remain, we can certainly agree and create special investigation laws to properly clarify the suspicions, but pushing for special investigation laws prematurely is political strife for the sake of political strife," criticizing the opposition's approach.

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