PPP lawmaker tells Daegu audit to await his party's rule to restore prosecutors' powers
In short
People Power Party lawmaker Kim Tae-gyu said on 20 October at a National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee audit in Daegu that his party should be awaited to take power, so that prosecutors' investigative powers can be restored. Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Yong-min reacted with "I'm speechless", and Ulsan prosecution office head Lee Jun-beom said the matter had already been decided by legislation.
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People Power Party lawmaker Kim Tae-gyu (김태규) said on 20 October that he thinks "검수원복" (restoring prosecutors' investigative powers to their original state) is right, and asked: "Please wait for our party to take power." Yonhap, Kyunghyang Shinmun and Maeil Business reported that he spoke at the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee audit of prosecution offices in Daegu, Busan and Ulsan, while criticising the abolition of prosecutors' supplementary investigation power. [ 1 , 3 , 4 ]
Newsis reported that Kim criticised the separation of investigation and prosecution and the change to a prosecution office, and said prosecutors' investigative power and name should be restored. He said the change had been pushed through unilaterally by a particular party and that, if his party gained the same power, it planned to overturn it. Newsis and Kyunghyang Shinmun quoted him as saying this was his personal will but that he thought it right. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
Kim also said it was not a matter of restoring supplementary investigation power but that prosecutors holding all investigative powers was right. Newsis and Kyunghyang Shinmun quoted him as saying that, as police hold it all, prosecutors may again hold it all. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
Yonhap and Maeil Business quoted Kim as saying that police handling investigations on the front line do not want supplementary investigation power abolished, and that prosecutors, though they call it reform, would feel the same. [ 1 , 4 ]
Newsis and Kyunghyang Shinmun reported that Kim cited the Busan roundhouse-kick case, the Daegu jeonse fraud case and the Ulsan subsidy fraud case to stress the role of supplementary investigation. Newsis added that he said most prosecutors work hard for the public as public officials and that it was right to keep working to win back their power and name. [ 2 , 3 ]
After Kim's remark, Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Yong-min (김용민) responded "어이가 없네", according to Yonhap and Maeil Business. Kyunghyang Shinmun said reactions such as "어이가 없다" came from the ruling side. Lee Jun-beom (이준범), head of the Ulsan District Prosecution Office (울산지방공소청), replied that the matter was already decided by legislation and that he would find appropriate ways and do his best to address gaps or protect rights that the public may face under the current system. [ 1 , 3 , 4 ]
Why it matters
The remarks show an open dispute between the parties over the abolition of prosecutors' supplementary investigation power. The documents give no further consequences; Kim said the view was his personal will.
Key facts
- Kim Tae-gyu (김태규) of the People Power Party said on 20 October: "I think restoring prosecutors' investigative powers to their original state is right. Please wait for our party to take power." [ 1 , 3 , 4 ]
- He spoke at a National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee audit held in Daegu, where he criticised the abolition of prosecutors' supplementary investigation power. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Kim said the change was handled unilaterally by a particular party and that his party would overturn it if it gained the same power. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Kim said it was not a matter of restoring supplementary investigation power but that prosecutors holding all investigative powers was right. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Yong-min (김용민) responded "어이가 없네" (roughly, "I'm speechless"). [ 1 , 4 ]
- Lee Jun-beom (이준범), head of the Ulsan District Prosecution Office (울산지방공소청), said the matter was "already decided by legislation" and pledged his best effort to protect public rights. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Kim Tae-gyu said at the 20 October audit that his party should be awaited to take power, and that he thinks restoring prosecutors' investigative powers is right. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Kim said that if his party gained the same power it would overturn the change, which he said a particular party had pushed through unilaterally. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Ulsan District Prosecution Office head Lee Jun-beom replied that the matter had already been decided by legislation and that he would do his best. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
Still unclear
- Where exactly the audit session was held. Newsis gives the Daegu Metropolitan Prosecution Office in Suseong District in its text but a Daegu High Court audit of courts in its photo caption; Kyunghyang Shinmun's photo caption also says Daegu High Court, while Yonhap and Maeil Business describe an audit of prosecution offices in Daegu, Busan and Ulsan.
- Whether Kim's position reflects his party's position. Newsis and Kyunghyang Shinmun quote Kim as saying it was his personal will; the documents give no statement from the People Power Party.
- Kim's claims that front-line police and prosecutors do not want the abolition of supplementary investigation power. These come only from Kim's own statement as reported by Yonhap and Maeil Business, and no document gives other evidence.