Law: "Prosecution Must Disclose Basis for Direct Investigation of Yoon's Defamation"

The court has ruled that the prosecution must disclose the internal grounds for directly investigating the defamation case against President Yoon Seok-yeol.

On the 12th, the Administrative Division 6 of the Seoul Administrative Court (Presiding Judge Na Jin-i) ruled in favor of the plaintiff in the lawsuit filed by the People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy against the Prosecutor General, seeking the cancellation of the refusal to disclose information regarding the 'Guidelines for Prosecutors' Initiation of Investigation (Regulations)'.

The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office directly investigated Kim Man-bae, the major shareholder of Hwacheon Daeyu Asset Management, and Shin Hak-rim, former chairman of the Media Union, who were accused of defaming President Yoon through false interviews aimed at influencing public opinion during the last presidential election, and indicted both on the 8th.

However, under the amended Prosecutors' Office Act, the prosecution is prohibited from directly investigating defamation cases, and there have been claims that the prosecution's involvement in this case contradicts the intent of the law. In response, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office stated in November last year that "there is no problem as the crimes that prosecutors can directly investigate and the evidence and facts of the crime are identical, thus recognizing direct relevance."

Subsequently, the People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy demanded the disclosure of the regulations that formed the basis of this judgment, but the prosecution refused, citing that "there is substantial reason to believe that disclosure would significantly hinder the performance of official duties or infringe upon the defendant's right to a fair trial," and filed a lawsuit in January seeking the cancellation of this refusal.