On the 4th, the Ministry of Justice fully refuted the Democratic Party of Korea's claim that the dispatched prosecutor system has degenerated into a playground for some prosecutors to build their credentials.
The Ministry of Justice stated that such claims by the Democratic Party show a complete misunderstanding of the nature and core duties of the Ministry. It explained that the abolition of the "Prosecutor Dispatch Review Committee" system was due to criticisms during the previous administration that the Minister of Justice interfered in the composition of investigation teams for specific cases through the committee, undermining the neutrality and independence of the prosecution.
On the afternoon of the 4th, the Ministry of Justice sent a notification message titled "Notice from the Ministry of Justice" to reporters, stating, "Today, the Democratic Party of Korea claimed that 'the prosecution abused the prosecutor dispatch system to seize control of key government agencies including the Ministry of Justice, and that the dispatched prosecutor system has become a privileged playground for some prosecutors who curry favor to build their credentials.' However, many of these claims are false and contain criticisms of the dispatch of legal experts that support lawful state functions based on the principles of the rule of law and strengthen inter-ministerial cooperation. Therefore, we will provide a detailed explanation of the purpose, procedures, and progress of prosecutor dispatch," and made the following statement.
The Ministry of Justice said, "Regarding prosecutors working at the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry is responsible for legal policy and administration, with various public officials from affiliated agencies such as prosecution, corrections, probation, and immigration working together," adding, "Therefore, it is consistent with the nature of the Ministry’s duties for public officials from affiliated agencies such as prosecution offices, correctional institutions, probation offices, and immigration offices to work at the Ministry of Justice."
It continued, "Nonetheless, disparaging only the fact that prosecutorial officials work at the Ministry of Justice as if it were an abnormal practice shows a complete lack of understanding of the nature of the Ministry and the essence of its duties," emphasizing this point.
The Ministry of Justice pointed out that during the Moon Jae-in administration, former Ministers of Justice Cho Kuk, Choo Mi-ae, and Park Beom-gye recruited a large number of lawyers from the Lawyers for a Democratic Society (Minbyun) to positions traditionally held by prosecutors under the banner of "de-prosecutorization" of the Ministry of Justice, which led to the Ministry receiving the lowest evaluation in government performance assessments and criticism of the Ministry’s "Minbyun-ization."
The Ministry stated, "As is well known, the 'de-prosecutorization' policy implemented by the previous government resulted in a serious imbalance favoring members of politically inclined groups such as Minbyun, severely undermining the continuity and expertise of the Ministry’s work. The Ministry also received the lowest rating in government performance evaluations during that period," adding, "There were even many criticisms that it was not 'de-prosecutorization' but rather 'Minbyun-ization.'"
The Ministry of Justice said, "Unlike the previous government, the current Ministry of Justice recruits outstanding talents based solely on professional expertise and capability, regardless of whether they are inside or outside the prosecution or affiliated with politically inclined groups such as Minbyun. We are doing our best for legal administration based on justice and common sense for the people and public welfare, not for the interests of any faction or political group," and added, "As a result, the Ministry has rapidly transformed from an organization where 'employees feel a sense of self-disgust' to one where 'all employees take pride in their work.'"
The Ministry explained that the reason for abolishing the Prosecutor Dispatch Review Committee system, established during former Minister Cho Kuk’s tenure last year, was not to facilitate freer dispatch of prosecutors as claimed by the Democratic Party, but because the Minister of Justice at the time repeatedly intervened in the composition of investigation teams for specific cases, drawing criticism for undermining the neutrality and independence of the prosecution.
The Ministry stated, "Regarding the dispatch of prosecutors to other government departments, when other departments request prosecutor dispatch, the Ministry of Justice carefully evaluates the need for legal advice and inter-agency cooperation, dispatching prosecutors only when absolutely necessary and in minimal numbers, following fair procedures such as open recruitment and personnel committee review."
It added, "However, the Prosecutor Dispatch Review Committee system was abolished last year because during the previous government, the Minister of Justice repeatedly intervened in the composition of investigation teams for specific cases, which was criticized for infringing on the neutrality and independence of the prosecution."
The Ministry also said, "The purpose of such prosecutor dispatch is to support the lawful performance of the functions of the relevant departments and to strengthen cooperation between ministries," adding, "For this reason, even during the previous government, most prosecutor dispatches to other departments were maintained, and prosecutors were newly dispatched to places such as the Ministry of National Defense’s Security Support Command."
The Ministry of Justice claimed that some of the Democratic Party’s assertions include clear falsehoods.
The Ministry pointed out, "The Democratic Party claims that 'the prosecutor dispatched to the Financial Supervisory Service is at the director level, and since account tracing is a matter decided solely by the director, it means the prosecutor was sent to wield absolute investigative authority outside the prosecution office.' However, the prosecutor in question does not engage in investigations such as account tracing but performs routine duties of a legal advisor, including legal consultation and review related to complaints and requests for investigation. Therefore, this claim is completely false."
Additionally, the Ministry said, "The Democratic Party claims that 'the Ministry of Justice dispatched only 13 judges domestically and internationally this year, the lowest in the past 10 years. Compared to creating nonexistent positions to dispatch prosecutors, this is a very passive attitude.' However, since the Ministry of Justice has no involvement in dispatching judges, who belong to the judiciary, this claim is also clearly false."
On the same day, the Democratic Party’s Committee for Countermeasures Against Prosecutorial Dictatorship and Political Oppression issued a statement saying, "Minister Han Dong-hoon abolished the Ministry of Justice’s prosecutor dispatch review committee from the Moon Jae-in administration, removing the Ministry’s authority over prosecutor dispatch operations and giving full authority over prosecutor dispatch to the prosecution," adding, "Despite filling key government positions with former prosecutors, the desire to expand the prosecutor kingdom seems endless."
The committee stated, "The dispatched prosecutor system has degenerated into a 'privileged playground' for some prosecutors seeking to build their credentials, with even the saying 'key positions are held by prosecutors' circulating," and argued, "The dispatched prosecutor system, which has become a privileged playground, must be normalized."
The committee also commented on Prosecutor A dispatched to the Financial Supervisory Service, saying, "Prosecutor A was dispatched to the Financial Supervisory Service as an 'extra staff member,' creating a position that did not previously exist, which is unprecedented in the past 10 years," and added, "If legal advice is needed, lawyers should be hired or specialized judges dispatched."
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