[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Choyoung] Former Minister of Justice Chu Mi-ae raised her voice on the 4th, calling the prosecution's indictment of Yoo Si-min, chairman of the Roh Moo-hyun Foundation, on charges of defamation against Prosecutor General Han Dong-hoon an "abuse of prosecutorial power."
On the same day, former Minister Chu wrote on her Facebook, "Just like the proverb 'When the crow flies, the pear falls,' the Supreme Prosecutors' Office suddenly indicted Chairman Yoo as soon as the new Prosecutor General was appointed yesterday."
She stated, "The essence of the related case is whether Channel A reporter Lee Mo and the current prosecutor conspired, a case that is already being prosecuted and tried," adding, "The investigation is currently at a standstill due to the prosecutor's refusal to cooperate. Chairman Yoo had identified signs of external access to the Roh Moo-hyun Foundation's account at the time and informed about this fact."
She continued by referring to media reports covering the conspiracy between Prosecutor General Han Dong-hoon and the Channel A reporter, as well as mentions related to Chairman Yoo, saying, "At that time, Chairman Yoo's suspicion and fear that (the prosecution was surveilling him) were not baseless at all," and emphasized, "The prosecution has the duty to thoroughly investigate and clearly reveal such serious crimes that damage the organization's trust."
Former Minister Chu criticized, "In a situation where a citizen who felt uneasy about personal information protection publicly apologized, the prosecutor filed a civil lawsuit demanding 500 million won in damages against him, and the prosecution, as if waiting for this, even indicted their own member. This cannot be called anything but an abuse of prosecutorial power," adding, "Prosecutorial power should be exercised to protect the rights of the people and must not be recklessly used to support a particular person's civil lawsuit."
Earlier, Chairman Yoo claimed through YouTube broadcasts in 2019 that "the Supreme Prosecutors' Office's Anti-Corruption and Strong Measures Division illegally tracked his and the Roh Moo-hyun Foundation's accounts," which led to a complaint filed by a civic group.
In January, Chairman Yoo issued an apology statement saying, "I sincerely apologize to all prosecution officials for causing suspicion that the prosecution surveilled me due to allegations that were not true," but Prosecutor Han reportedly filed a lawsuit last month demanding 500 million won in damages against Chairman Yoo and submitted a statement to the prosecution requesting Yoo's punishment.
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