▲ President Lee Jae-myung speaks during a meeting of senior presidential secretaries at the Blue House on October 1.
President Lee Jae-myung called for strong reform on Thursday (October 1), one day ahead of the abolition of the Prosecution Service and the launch of the Prosecution Agency and the Serious Crime Investigation Agency, stating that the responsibility of the police has grown in line with a major overhaul of the criminal justice system.
At the senior secretaries meeting he presided over at the Blue House that day, President Lee said, "Tomorrow, the Prosecution Agency and the Serious Crime Investigation Agency will officially launch," adding, "The flawed era when the prosecution monopolized investigation and indictment, exercised omnipotent power, and acted as a political prosecution to eliminate and suppress political opponents is coming to an end, and a new criminal justice system based on the principles of checks and balances is beginning."
He continued, "The prosecution reform whose seeds were sown during the Participatory Government and whose framework was built during the Moon Jae-in administration is bearing fruit under the government of popular sovereignty," assessing, "Following the civilian control of the military and the depoliticization of intelligence agencies, it will be recorded as a new chapter in the history of reforming South Korea's power institutions."
However, he emphasized, "Following the redistribution of authority, police reform will become a major task for our government going forward," adding, "The responsibility of the police has become heavier than ever.
As their authority has grown, external oversight and internal self-purification must be carried out strictly."
He also urged, "In particular, strong and substantive reform measures are necessary so that misconduct during investigations or the cover-up of cases, which the public worries about, cannot even be dreamed of."
He added, "It is even more important to ensure that the system takes proper root in daily life and that a just social order is maintained," stating, "We must make every effort to ensure that citizens do not suffer unjust harm and that no small loophole arises in investigative capability, fairness, or victim protection during the process of settling into the new system."
He pledged, "The government of popular sovereignty will steadfastly fulfill the historical calling of irreversible prosecution reform and accelerate reforms across society, centered on three core social policies."
(Photo: Blue House Press Corps, Yonhap News)
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