Special Units Including Public Security... New Positions Established for Human Rights and Criminal Affairs Duties
[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] The Ministry of Justice is reportedly pushing for an organizational reform plan that eliminates four deputy prosecutor general-level positions at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, which assist the Prosecutor General and serve as the control tower for local prosecutors' offices nationwide. The core of the reform is to strengthen criminal and trial divisions, aiming to downsize the Supreme Prosecutors' Office itself before personnel changes involving mid-level prosecutors such as deputy and chief prosecutors.
According to the legal community on the 11th, the Ministry of Justice sent an official letter to the Supreme Prosecutors' Office requesting opinions on the proposed prosecutorial organizational reform plan.
The reform plan reportedly includes abolishing four deputy prosecutor general-level positions: the Investigation Information Policy Officer, Senior Research Officer of the Anti-Corruption and Strong Crime Division, Public Investigation Policy Officer of the Public Investigation Division, and Forensic Investigation Planning Officer of the Forensic Investigation Division. It also proposes merging the Investigation Information 1 and 2 Officers under the Investigation Information Policy Officer into a single Investigation Information Officer.
The Investigation Information Policy Officer, who has served as the "eyes and ears" of the Prosecutor General, is widely expected to be abolished. Earlier in March, the Ministry of Justice's Legal and Prosecutorial Reform Committee recommended immediately eliminating the Investigation Information 1 and 2 Officer positions under the Policy Officer, stating that "although information, investigation, and prosecution functions should be dispersed to prevent human rights violations, the prosecution currently holds extensive information-gathering capabilities."
The number of divisions within departments will also be reduced. The Anti-Corruption and Strong Crime Division, currently composed of five divisions, will be downsized to three: Investigation Command Support Division, Crime Proceeds Support Division, and Organized Crime and Narcotics Division. The Public Investigation Division, currently consisting of three divisions, will be reduced to two: Public Security and Election Investigation Support Division and Labor Investigation Support Division.
Instead, the Criminal Division will be strengthened. A deputy prosecutor general-level Criminal Policy Officer will be newly established, and the Criminal Division, which currently has only two divisions, will be expanded to five. The Trial and Litigation Division under the Trial and Litigation Department will also be increased by one. Additionally, the Human Rights Department will be abolished and replaced with a Human Rights Policy Officer, under whom the Human Rights Planning Officer and Gender Equality Officer will be placed.
Changes are also expected in the organizational structure of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office. The Anti-Corruption 1 and 2 Divisions, Economic Crime Criminal Division, and Fair Trade Investigation Division under the 3rd Deputy Prosecutor General, who handles special investigations, will be transferred to the 4th Deputy Prosecutor General. Meanwhile, the Public Investigation 1 and 2 Divisions and five Criminal Divisions will be placed under the 3rd Deputy Prosecutor General. The 1st and 2nd Deputy Prosecutor Generals will be reorganized to focus on the Criminal, Trial, and Investigation Divisions. The Defense Acquisition Investigation Division is planned to be transferred to the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office.
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