"Didn't You Treat Me Differently Before?" Yoon Seok-yeol's 'Determined Remarks' Spark Debate
Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol is responding during the Supreme Prosecutors' Office audit held at the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee in Yeouido, Seoul, on the morning of the 22nd. [Image source=Yonhap News]
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Seul-gi] Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol made a series of 'determined remarks' during the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee's National Police Agency inspection on the 22nd, stating, "The Prosecutor General is not a subordinate of the Minister of Justice," as the real-time TV broadcast viewership rating of the inspection approached 10%.
According to the viewership rating research company ATAM, the combined real-time viewership rating of the '2020 National Police Agency Inspection Broadcast,' aired from 10:08 AM to 11:52 AM on six channels including terrestrial broadcasters KBS1, SBS, MBC, comprehensive programming channel JTBC, and news channels Yonhap News TV and YTN, was 9.91%.
At the inspection, Prosecutor General Yoon responded to ruling party lawmakers' questions with remarks such as, "Legally speaking, the Prosecutor General is not a subordinate of the Minister of Justice," "Isn't that selective suspicion? You didn't think that way about me in the past, did you?" and "'Slander' is the most polite word I can use."
During the inspection, Yoon said regarding Minister Chu's exercise of investigative command authority, "The Prosecutor General is not a subordinate of the Minister of Justice," adding, "Since the Minister is basically a politician, that makes the political neutrality of the prosecution and judicial independence distant matters."
When Park Beom-gye of the Democratic Party of Korea accused Yoon of 'selective justice' and said, "Unfortunately, it has raised doubts about Prosecutor General Yoon's sense of justice and fairness," Yoon retorted, "You didn't think that way about me in the past, did you? Isn't that also selective suspicion?"
Yoon further strongly denied allegations of the Prosecutor General's passive instructions related to the Lime Asset Management case, saying, "'Slander' is the most polite word I can use."
Earlier on the 18th, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office rebutted the allegations of passive instructions by the prosecution regarding the Lime Asset Management case, stating, "This is completely unfounded and amounts to slander against the Prosecutor General."
Meanwhile, ATAM compiles viewership ratings based on 700 households in the metropolitan area.
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