Three Witnesses Refuse to Swear at 'Chae Sang-byeong Hearing'... Opposition Says "They Intend to Lie"

Legislative Hearing on the 'Special Prosecutor Act for Chae Sang-byeong' by the Legislation and Judiciary Committee
Former Defense Minister Lee Jong-seop "Accused Status"

On the 21st, at the legislative hearing for the 'Chae Sang-byeong Special Prosecutor Act' held solely by the opposition party in the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, a situation arose where key witnesses consecutively refused to take the witness oath. Opposition party members of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee strongly criticized them, saying, "They have declared that they will lie."

The individuals who refused to take the witness oath at the legislative hearing were former Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-seop, former Deputy Minister of National Defense Shin Beom-cheol, and former Commander of the 1st Marine Division Lim Seong-geun. They were strongly reprimanded for refusing the oath in unison.

Committee Chairperson Jeong Cheong-rae warned them, saying, "If the reason for refusing the oath is judged to be unjustified, we will file charges for the crime of refusing the witness oath," and added, "Please have the administrative staff of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee prepare so that immediate prosecution can be taken in the afternoon through legal review."

Key Witnesses Lee Jong-seop and Lim Seong-geun Refuse to Take Witness Oath
(Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Ju-seong = On the morning of the 21st, at the legislative hearing on the "Special Prosecutor Appointment Act for the Investigation of Obstruction and Cover-up of the Death of a Marine in the Line of Duty" (Chae Sang-byeong Special Prosecutor Act) held by the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, key witnesses Lee Jong-seop, former Minister of National Defense, and Lim Seong-geun, former commander of the 1st Marine Division, sat in their seats refusing to take the witness oath.
From the front row, left to right: Park Seong-jae, Minister of Justice; Park Jeong-hoon, former head of the Marine Investigation Unit; Yoo Jae-eun, Legal Affairs Officer of the Ministry of National Defense; Lim Seong-geun, former commander of the 1st Marine Division; Lee Jong-seop, former Minister of National Defense. 2024.6.21
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Former Minister Lee Jong-seop cited his current status as a defendant reported to the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) as the reason for refusing the witness oath. He stated that he would not take the witness oath according to Article 3 of the Act on Testimony and Appraisal (National Assembly Testimony and Appraisal Act) and Article 148 of the Criminal Procedure Act. Article 148 of the Criminal Procedure Act allows a witness to refuse testimony if they are subject to criminal prosecution or indictment or have concerns about guilt.

Kim Seung-won, the Democratic Party's Legislation and Judiciary Committee secretary, pointed out, "Do they intend to refuse everything knowing what questions the members will ask?" and added, "It seems they conspired in advance to refuse the oath but still testify." He further argued, "They can take the oath and refuse to answer only if there are facts unfavorable to themselves at that time."

Assembly member Jeon Hyun-hee said, "Those who did not take the oath have, in front of the public witnessing this historic moment, effectively declared, 'I will lie,'" and added, "It is no different from confessing to being the culprit."

Former Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-seop Explains Reason for Refusing to Testify
(Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Juhyung = Former Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-seop explained his reason for refusing to testify at the legislative hearing on the "Special Prosecutor Appointment Act for the Investigation of Obstruction and Cover-up of the Death of a Marine" (Special Prosecutor Act proposed by Chae Sang-byeong) held at the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee on the morning of June 21, 2024.
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＜Copyright(c) Yonhap News Agency, Unauthorized reproduction and redistribution, AI training and use prohibited＞

Assembly member Kim Yong-min also protested, saying, "It is difficult to accept not only refusal to testify but refusal to take the oath from the start," and urged, "The chairperson should distinguish between refusal to take the oath and refusal to testify, ask them accordingly, and if they still refuse, file charges."

Assembly member Park Ji-won criticized, saying, "President Yoon Seok-yeol said, 'Those who refuse are the culprits,'" and added, "Witnesses who refused to take the oath are betraying the people's mandate and are in rebellion against the people."

Meanwhile, the People Power Party did not attend the plenary session that day in protest against the original committee formation.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.