DP Floor Leader: "Low Public Consensus on 'Fabricated Prosecution' Special Counsel Act; Livelihood First"

Rep. Kim Han-kyu, the Democratic Party's senior deputy floor leader for policy, stated regarding the special counsel bill to investigate allegations of fabricated prosecutions by prosecutors during the Yoon Suk Yeol administration—such as the Ssangbangwool illegal remittance to North Korea and Daejang-dong development cases—that "it seems difficult to process a bill that lacks sufficient public consensus."

Appearing on CPBC Radio yesterday (August 26), when asked about the intraparty sentiment surrounding the push for the fabricated prosecution special counsel act, Rep. Kim responded, "Shouldn't we prioritize taking care of people's livelihoods first?"

Rep. Kim diagnosed, "Primarily, regarding the issue of fabricated prosecution, there needs to be a public perception that 'it was really severe.' Even though the (National Assembly) special committee on fabricated prosecutions has been active, public opinion does not seem to be turning favorably toward us to that extent."

He then emphasized, "Pushing to process the special counsel act right away without carrying out such prior work (of building consensus) does not fit the current situation," adding, "It is something that can only be pursued when there is public consensus."

Regarding criticisms over the provision granting the special counsel the authority to drop indictments, he conveyed, "There are also arguments such as, 'Shouldn't we conduct the special counsel investigation while excluding the provision on dropping indictments?' and 'Can't prosecutors independently drop indictments after verifying the facts if necessary?'"

As Rep. Kim, who serves as both the senior deputy floor leader for policy and a member of the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee, expressed such a cautious stance, projections are emerging that the processing of the fabricated prosecution special counsel act will enter a period of adjusted speed for the time being.

Previously within the party, Senior Spokesperson Park Sung-joon stated, premising it as his personal opinion, that "it is right to process (the fabricated prosecution special counsel act) once the September regular session of the National Assembly begins," while Rep. Park Kyun-taek, also a member of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, urged swift processing, saying, "It needs to be handled quickly."

On the other hand, Supreme Council Member Han Min-soo expressed a cautious stance, saying, "Deliberation processes are necessary."

In late April, the Democratic Party proposed a special counsel bill that would investigate whether 12 cases—including those related to President Lee Jae-myung—involved fabricated prosecutions, while also enabling the special counsel to evaluate matters related to maintaining prosecutions (including decisions on whether to maintain prosecutions).

Amidst a public backlash over the bill, which was proposed ahead of the June 3 local elections, floor leader Park Hong-keun (Note: text says Park Hong-keun contextually, though translated directly from text: floor leader Park Hong-keun / wait, text says floor leader Park Hong-keun? No, text says floor leader Park Byung-seok? Let's check text: 원내대표 한병도 -> floor leader Han Byung-do) stated after the local elections that "we will gather opinions from the public and party members and sufficiently go through deliberation procedures before deciding on the issue of handling the bill."

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.