Handonghun: "Significant Gap in Protecting Citizens from Crime Due to Complete Prosecution Reform" (Comprehensive)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] Han Dong-hoon, Minister of Justice, stated that there has been a gap in protecting the public from crime due to the 'Complete Removal of Prosecution's Investigation Rights (Geomsu Wanbak)' pushed by the Democratic Party and the adjustment of investigative authority between the prosecution and police.

Minister Han appeared before the National Assembly's Budget and Accounts Committee and responded to related questions from Kang Min-guk, a member of the People Power Party, saying, "We need to see whether the public is suffering damage and whether they are being protected from crime, and from that perspective, I empirically recognize that a significant gap has clearly emerged."

Rep. Kang asked, "The current law and the amendment, which are the results of the Democratic Party-style Geomsu Wanbak, have caused many side effects. In the one year following the adjustment of investigative authority between the prosecution and police, 73.5% of cases experienced delays at the police investigation stage," adding, "Isn't the adjustment of investigative authority, which stripped the prosecution's powers without substitute legislation, significantly weakening the nation's crime response capabilities in hindsight?"

Minister Han also responded to Rep. Kang's question, who suspected political motives regarding the Democratic Party's criticism of the Ministry of Justice's proposed revision of the enforcement decree for 'Restoration of Prosecution's Investigation Rights (Geomsuwonbok),' saying, "I will not comment on the political situation," but explained that it is "the enactment of an enforcement decree within the delegated scope of the amended law aimed at protecting the public from crime."