‘Kim Yeosa Special Prosecutor Act’ Passes Legal Subcommittee... Ruling Party "Unilateral Processing" vs Opposition "Reflecting Public Opinion"

Democratic Party Aims to Pass Deepfake Undercover Investigation Special Act
at Plenary Session on the 14th

The 'Kim Geon-hee Special Prosecutor Act' passed the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee's Bill Review Subcommittee 1 on the 5th. Although all three members of the subcommittee from the People Power Party opposed it, all five members from the Democratic Party supported it, leading to the approval of the Special Prosecutor Act.

On the 5th, an official was reviewing a booklet at the Legislation and Judiciary Committee's Bill Review Subcommittee 1 held at the National Assembly. Photo by Yonhap News

The Bill Review Subcommittee held a meeting on the 5th and approved the 'Kim Geon-hee Special Prosecutor Act.'

This Special Prosecutor Act, proposed by the Democratic Party on the 17th of last month, has a broader scope of investigation compared to the two previous Special Prosecutor Acts that were discarded after President Yoon Seok-yeol's re-request and the National Assembly's re-vote.

In addition to the existing allegations of stock manipulation, luxury handbag bribery, state affairs interference, and personnel interference, new allegations related to Mr. Myeong Tae-gyun and the relocation of the presidential office's residence have been added.

Kim Seung-won, chairman of the Bill Review Subcommittee and a member of the Democratic Party, said to reporters at the National Assembly on the day, “We will enforce the Special Prosecutor Act to restore fairness, common sense, and the spirit of the constitution that Kim Geon-hee has damaged,” adding, “We hope the Presidential Office and the ruling party accept the firm public opinion demanding the Special Prosecutor.”

Since the Democratic Party aims to pass the Special Prosecutor Act at the plenary session on the 14th, the bill that passed the subcommittee on this day is highly likely to be swiftly processed in the full Legislation and Judiciary Committee meeting, leveraging the numerical superiority of the opposition party.

The ruling party criticized the Democratic Party for effectively processing the Special Prosecutor Act unilaterally.

People Power Party lawmaker Yoo Sang-beom told reporters, “The Special Prosecutor Act passed today is a typical example of targeted investigation,” and claimed, “Unlike the usual practice of consensus processing, the unilateral vote to force the passage of the Special Prosecutor Act is a political intention to impeach the president through the special prosecutor.”

Meanwhile, the Bill Review Subcommittee also approved an amendment to the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes, which enables undercover investigations into digital sex crimes such as deepfakes. The bill expands the existing special provisions for undercover investigations and non-disclosure of identity targeting children and adolescents to include adult-targeted recordings and fabricated videos.