ROK Prosecutor General Delays Moon Administration Attempt to Exonerate Corrupt Former Prime Minister

The last person remaining that can delay the Korean left’s attempt to completely take over prosecuting powers is Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl. The Moon administration is trying to rehabilitate the image of former corrupt Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook by appointing a judge with deep ties to to disgraced former Justice Minister Cho Kuk to look into it. ROK Heads may remember that Cho is good friends with Moon, so it is likely anyone with ties to him will provide investigation results favorable to Han Myeong-sook. Yoon has been delaying the investigation much to the ire of the Korean left:

President Moon Jae-in on Monday urged his justice minister and the prosecutor general to stop fighting each other and cooperate to complete reform of the prosecution.    

“Last week, the Ministry of Justice and the prosecution each launched task-force teams to protect human rights during criminal procedures,” Moon said during his opening remarks at a Blue House policy meeting that included both top officials. “Since the two powerful organs willingly started the initiatives, they must cooperate with each other and prepare a bold reform measure to make the people feel actual changes.”    

Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl has been facing growing pressures from the ruling party to step down for his constant discord with Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae.

Moon stressed the importance of cooperation as the friction between Yoon and Choo reached a new peak last week amid disagreements over an ongoing investigation into the prosecutors’ handling of a 2010 corruption probe into former Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook.    

On May 29, Yoon reassigned the case to the human rights monitoring office of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office. The investigation is reviewing prosecutors’ suspected coercion of a witness to testify against Han, and was originally assigned to the more independent and powerful Inspection Headquarters of the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office.    

Led by Han Dong-soo, a former judge appointed by Choo’s predecessor Cho Kuk, the Inspection Headquarters has the power to request warrants, conduct raids and detain suspects, unlike the human rights monitoring office. Han Dong-soo has also argued that his team should be in charge of the internal probe.    

During a National Assembly hearing last week, Choo said Yoon’s assignment was a mistake. She then ordered the Inspection Headquarters to directly question key witnesses instead of waiting for the human rights office’s findings.  

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read much more at the link, but the Korean left wants Yoon to resign, but by law his term runs until July 2021.