[Asia Economy, reporter Kim Young-eun] Former Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Tae-seop criticized the government's prosecution reform policy on March 8, calling it "nothing short of a comedy."
On this day, Kim posted an article titled "Prosecution Reform Discussions Lacking Even the Minimum Objectivity" on his Facebook page, stating, "If you want to separate investigative and prosecutorial powers, it should be applied equally to all institutions. The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials, which they created, is being given a monopoly over both investigative and prosecutorial powers, while at the same time, they are pushing for 'completely stripping the prosecution of its investigative powers.' This makes meaningful discussion impossible."
He continued, "During the so-called 'eradication of deep-rooted evils,' it was almost impossible to even mention separating investigative and prosecutorial powers for the prosecution," and added, "If there is no consistency, discussion becomes impossible. In such a situation, arguing about whether someone has changed their stance on separating investigative and prosecutorial powers is like debating the truth of a proposition that is based on a false premise."
He also said, "When positions are changed according to political gain or loss at any given moment, the national system falls into disarray," adding, "If the original intention was to push for the separation of investigative and prosecutorial powers, then the prosecution's authority to oversee the police, which would end up monopolizing investigative power, should have been strengthened or at least maintained."
He went on to criticize, "However, during the so-called 'eradication of deep-rooted evils,' the special investigation division of the prosecution was actually strengthened, while the police were given a 'carrot' by effectively abolishing the prosecution's authority to direct investigations through the implementation of investigative power adjustment. Then, with a complete reversal of position, they now claim to want to separate investigative and supervisory powers, resulting in a situation where the police not only monopolize investigative authority but are also free from any oversight or direction. Such low-level chaos makes normal discussion impossible."
Kim emphasized, "Consistency and objectivity are the minimum conditions the government must strive to uphold. Without them, trust cannot be established, and neither support nor opposition can be meaningfully discussed."
He added, "This government seems to have no understanding of how important that is. Everything is like that. If, for various reasons, you oppose the Four Major Rivers Project but suddenly say your heart races for the Gadeokdo project, then meaningful discussion becomes impossible. Is this not a comedy? I am truly concerned for the state of the country," he criticized.
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