President Moon rejects top prosecutor's resignation

President Moon Jae-in shakes hands with Kim Oh-soo, prosecutor-general, in Cheong Wa Dae, Monday. Yonhap

By Nam Hyun-woo

President Moon Jae-in rejected Prosecutor-General Kim Oh-soo's resignation on Monday, in an apparent move to prevent a full-scale conflict between the prosecution and the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), which is seeking to reform the prosecution to remove its investigative powers.

Kim told the president the concerns shared by prosecutors about the consequences of the DPK-led reform bill, if approved, during their meeting held at Cheong Wa Dae in late afternoon.

Moon expressed his trust in Kim and asked the top prosecutor to finish his term of appointment without stepping down, saying that he has no reason to resign because he's not responsible for the current situation.

Although Moon was wary of the confrontation between the DPK and the prosecution, the president was basically on the same page with the DPK regarding the bill, and noted the need for reforms. The DPK argues that the reform bill is necessary to rein in the prosecution's overreaching authority both to prosecute and lead investigations, while the main opposition party, the People Power Party (PPP), along with the prosecution, argue that the bill seeks to deprive prosecutors of their investigative powers.

"People have trust in the investigative capability of prosecutors, but it is also true a stark reality that they have doubts over the fairness of investigations. Forcible investigation and prosecution are the most powerful powers the state has, so victims or suspects cannot help but question the fairness," Moon was quoted as saying.

"Looking at past history, it is difficult to say that prosecutors' investigations have always been fair and that is why the need for legislation and systemization has arisen. The prosecution needs to make ceaseless efforts for reform and self-scrutiny," he said.

Moon added that reforming the prosecution should be conducted for the purpose of serving the people, and that the National Assembly's passage of the reform bill has the same purpose.

Kim offered his resignation a day earlier in protest of the DPK's efforts to pass a reform bill aimed at separating the prosecution and investigative powers that Korea's prosecution has.

Presidential spokesperson Park Kyung-mee speaks during a press conference at Cheong Wa Dae, Monday. Yonhap

The top prosecutor has been aggressively protesting the reform bill, citing its possible side effects.

"A new legal system that may seriously affect people's rights requires public consensus and agreement between the ruling and the opposition parties," Kim said in a statement announcing his resignation.

After the March 9 presidential election, which ended in a razor-thin victory for Yoon Suk-yeol of the main opposition People Power Party, the DPK accelerated its efforts to pass the bill, as it believes that the prosecution's power will grow to an excessive degree under the president-elect, who is the former prosecutor-general.

Yoon turned himself into a political heavyweight without having any political experience, thanks to and public support he gained during his stint as the prosecutor-general. While he was originally appointed by President Moon, he then used his authority to launch investigations into some of the Moon administration's top officials.

The DPK decided to call a vote on the bill this month at the National Assembly, where it holds the majority ― 172 seats ― in the 300-member Assembly. The bill will then be tabled at the final Cabinet meeting under President Moon Jae-in on May 3, before Yoon is sworn in on May 10.

As the move has drawn strong opposition from Yoon's People Power Party (PPP), other prosecutors and Kim, Moon appears to have rejected Kim's resignation in order to entice the DPK and the prosecution to discuss the bill.

Despite Moon's efforts to prevent a full-scale conflict, the DPK is expediting its efforts to pass the bill before Yoon steps into office.

"Kim's resignation was meaningless and irresponsible," DPK floor leader Rep. Park Hong-keun said Monday. "The resignation contains no self-reflection on the prosecution's inappropriate exercising of its authority, and turns a blind eye to Yoon's efforts to control the prosecution. He is trying to break the legally-set prosecutor-general's term in order to protect the prosecution's privileges."

The PPP is seeking to block the DPK's efforts to pass the reform bill in the National Assembly through a filibuster, which the latter is looking to end with the help of the minor progressive Justice Party.

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