Democratic Party Pushes Forward with Martial Law, Kim Keon Hee, and Chae Sangbyeong Special Prosecutor Bills
People Power Party Unable to Block Legislation Amid Ruling Party's Dominance
Large-Scale Investigation Targeting Yoon Suk Yeol and His Wife Appears Unavoidable
The Democratic Party of Korea, which has become the dominant ruling party, is set to convene a plenary session of the National Assembly on the afternoon of June 5 to attempt to pass the so-called "three major special prosecutor bills" (the Martial Law Special Prosecutor Act, the Kim Keon Hee Special Prosecutor Act, and the Chae Sangbyeong Special Prosecutor Act), as well as the Prosecutor Disciplinary Act. If these special prosecutor bills are passed, a large-scale investigation targeting former President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife is expected to begin in earnest. The People Power Party is strongly opposing these moves, but with the loss of the presidential right to request reconsideration (veto), they have no effective means to block the legislation.
President Lee Jae Myung is speaking at the 'President's First Order, Emergency Economic Inspection Task Force (TF) Meeting' held on the 4th at the Yongsan Presidential Office Building in Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News
On this day, the ruling and opposition parties plan to put the Martial Law Special Prosecutor Act, the Kim Keon Hee Special Prosecutor Act, and the Chae Sangbyeong Special Prosecutor Act to a vote in the plenary session. Since the Democratic Party, which holds a majority of seats, is pushing ahead, the bills are expected to pass. Under the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, these special prosecutor bills passed the National Assembly plenary session several times but were discarded due to the exercise of the presidential veto. However, now that the Lee Jae Myung administration is in power, the process is likely to proceed swiftly.
The Martial Law Special Prosecutor Act is aimed at investigating all allegations related to former President Yoon's 12·3 Martial Law declaration. The special prosecutor candidates will be nominated by both the Democratic Party and the Cho Kuk Innovation Party, with each party recommending one candidate, and the president appointing one of them. The Kim Keon Hee Special Prosecutor Act combines the existing Myung Taegyun Special Prosecutor Act and the Kim Keon Hee Special Prosecutor Act, and will investigate candidate nomination interference and illegal opinion polls.
The Chae Sangbyeong Special Prosecutor Act is designed to investigate the death of a Marine during a search operation for a missing person in July 2023 and suspicions of interference in the investigation. This bill effectively targets former President Yoon. In addition, the Prosecutor Disciplinary Act extends the authority to request disciplinary action against prosecutors, which currently belongs to the Prosecutor General, to the Minister of Justice. If passed, the Minister of Justice will be able to instruct the Ministry's Inspector General to investigate specific prosecutors.
In addition, the Democratic Party held a subcommittee meeting of the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee the previous day and processed a revision to the Court Organization Act, which would gradually increase the number of Supreme Court justices (including the Chief Justice) from the current 14 to up to 30. The bill is expected to be brought to the full Judiciary Committee soon and then submitted to the plenary session. While the People Power Party and some in the legal community argue that further discussion is needed, the Democratic Party is likely to push forward, as this is a key pledge of President Lee Jae Myung.
If the three major special prosecutor bills pass the plenary session, investigations targeting former President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife are expected to begin in earnest. According to the Martial Law Special Prosecutor Act and the Kim Keon Hee Special Prosecutor Act, each investigation team will consist of a special prosecutor, a deputy special prosecutor, dispatched prosecutors, special investigators, and dispatched government officials, totaling 205 personnel per team. The Chae Sangbyeong special prosecutor team will consist of 105 personnel, including 20 dispatched prosecutors.
The People Power Party is strongly protesting. However, as a minority opposition party with only 107 seats and without the presidential veto, they have no means to block the bills except by appealing to public opinion. Park Chan Dae, acting leader and floor leader of the Democratic Party, stated at the Supreme Council meeting that morning, "The National Assembly will process the Martial Law Special Prosecutor Act, the Kim Keon Hee Special Prosecutor Act, and the Chae Sangbyeong Special Prosecutor Act," adding, "The Democratic Party will fulfill its responsibilities to restore normalcy to the Republic of Korea, carrying out the mandate given by the sovereign people."
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