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| Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl leaves his office in southern Seoul after accepting Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae's recent order regarding an ongoing investigation. / Yonhap |
By Kim Se-jeong
Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl "gave into" Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae, Thursday, as he accepted the minister's order to recuse himself from a controversial case involving a now fired journalist and one of his close aides.
Releasing a statement early in the morning, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office said, "The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office will carry out the investigation, and the district office has been notified of the decision..
But, at the end of the statement, it said: "In the 2013 investigation into the National Intelligence Service, Yoon, who was then the investigation team leader, was removed from the team," indicating the source of Yoon's displeasure.
Choo immediately welcomed Yoon's announcement, stating, "Yoon answered citizens' calls for a fair investigation."
By accepting the order, Yoon avoided a head-on clash with Choo and put an end to a conflict between the two which began early this month.
The prosecutor general viewed the district office's investigation into his aide as a deliberate, politically-motivated one with the goal of damaging him and pushed to stop it by asking the Supreme Prosecutors' Office to convene an expert panel to review the validity of the probe.
Choo, conversely, saw Yoon as attempting to stop the investigation as a favor to his aide.
On July 2, Choo ordered Yoon to stop seeking the review and to give the investigators full freedom.
Yoon immediately withdrew the request for the review, but protested quietly about the call to give full freedom.
The next day, he called a meeting with senior prosecutors from across the country during which the majority voiced opposition to Choo's moves.
On Monday, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office released an official statement containing the conclusions drawn at the meeting.
Wednesday marked the climax of the tension between the two.
Choo sent Yoon an ultimatum in the morning demanding an official response. Yoon's answer came later that day with him promising to remove himself from the case and to appoint a senior prosecutor to oversee the investigation. The minister immediately rejected this proposed compromise.
In Korea, the Prosecutor General reports to the Justice Minister about ongoing investigations. The Justice Minister has the right to offer directions to investigations. However, many experts and prosecutors view Choo as having abused her power in her dealing with Yoon.
Choo and Yoon have not been on good terms from the minister's first day in office.
Yoon, who was inaugurated last year, was President Moon's pick for the role of prosecutor general, however, he quickly became a headache for Moon as he ordered investigations into the President's close aides.
He ordered an investigation into Cho Kuk, the former justice minister and a confidante of Moon, who spearheaded prosecutorial reform, over corruption allegations involving his family members. Cho resigned from the post late last year and he and his wife are currently on trial.
Choo who was also appointed by President Moon took office in January and immediately started to pressure Yoon. The minister, against Yoon's wishes, restructured the prosecutor's office and reassigned people ― putting prosecutors who supported her in higher positions.
The ongoing tension poses a challenge to Moon's long drive for prosecutorial reform. In Korea prosecutors have long been considered privileged and have frequently been embroiled in claims of corruption that also involved politicians.
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