[Profile] Song Doo-hwan, Candidate for National Human Rights Commission Chairperson and 'Special Prosecutor for North Korea Remittances'... Former Minbyun President and Constitutional Court Justice

Song Doo-hwan, Nominee for Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-ju] Song Doo-hwan (72), the newly nominated candidate for the Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission, is a legal professional who has been active in various fields of human rights.

Song, a graduate of Gyeonggi High School and Seoul National University Law School, entered the legal profession by passing the 22nd Judicial Examination (12th class of the Judicial Research and Training Institute). He served as a judge at the Seoul District Court and Chuncheon District Court, and in 1990, he opened his law practice. He held positions such as Public Relations Director and Human Rights Director of the Korean Bar Association, and in 2000, he served as the President of the Lawyers for a Democratic Society (Minbyun), becoming a representative figure of the progressive and grassroots legal community.

In 1997, during the passage of the "Labor Law Rush," he led a statement urging the re-amendment of the labor law along with 554 lawyers. In 2003, he was appointed as the fourth special prosecutor in constitutional history to investigate the "illegal remittance to North Korea" allegations. He led the investigation that revealed Hyundai Group's secret remittances to North Korea and gained public recognition by indicting Park Ji-won, the current Director of the National Intelligence Service and former Chief of Staff to President Kim Dae-jung.

In 2007, he was appointed as a Justice of the Constitutional Court by former President Roh Moo-hyun and served as Acting Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court in 2013. During the 2010 constitutional appeal on the death penalty, contrary to public perception, he issued a "constitutional opinion" but also added a concurring opinion emphasizing that the issue should be resolved through the people's choice and decision via the legislature, drawing attention.

Additionally, Song has been actively involved in various fields, serving as a member of the Prosecution System Reform Committee, Government Innovation Promotion Committee, a non-standing member of the Central Personnel Committee, and outside director of Woori Bank and Kookmin Bank. In 2017, he also served as the inaugural chairman of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office Prosecution Reform Committee.

▲ Yeongdong, Chungbuk ▲ Gyeonggi High School ▲ Seoul National University Law School ▲ 22nd Judicial Examination ▲ President of Lawyers for a Democratic Society ▲ Special Prosecutor for the North Korean Remittance Allegation Case ▲ Member of the National Human Rights Commission Disability Discrimination Mediation Committee ▲ Justice of the Constitutional Court ▲ Representative Attorney at Law Firm Hangyeol (current)