Follow-Up Discussions on Criminal Procedure Act... "Consult Well With Your Close Friends"

[Anchor]

During the presidential work report by the Ministry of Justice and other agencies today (August 5), the Criminal Procedure Act, which passed the Cabinet meeting yesterday, was a key topic of discussion. Amid talks on concrete follow-up measures following the abolition of prosecutors' supplementary investigation powers, President Lee Jae-myung urged the relevant ministries to consult well with each other, noting that the ministers are close.

Reporter Kang Min-u has the details.

[Reporter]

During the work reports from the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, the prosecution, and the police, President Lee Jae-myung made these remarks regarding public concerns over the abolition of prosecutors' investigative powers under the revised Criminal Procedure Act.

[President Lee Jae-myung : There are cases like, "How did the police handle family-related incidents?" There are aspects where it has become very easy to bury cases if the police simply manage to silence the victim appropriately.]

While the police emphasized institutional safeguards such as rotational personnel assignments and the appeal system,

[Yoo Jae-sung / Acting Commissioner General of the Korean National Police Agency : When an appeal is filed, even non-referral cases are legally mandated to be transferred.]

the Ministry of Justice placed greater weight on practical limitations.

[Chung Sung-ho / Minister of Justice : Although records are supposed to be submitted regarding non-referred cases, because it is not their own case, a drop in the level of attention is inevitable.]

Discussions also covered how to operate the joint investigation headquarters between prosecutors and police moving forward.

[Chung Sung-ho / Minister of Justice : The operational basis for the current joint investigation headquarters is very weak. From our perspective, it is virtually nonexistent.]

This means there is no legal basis for the role of prosecutors within the joint investigation headquarters now that their investigative powers have been stripped.

[Lee Jin-soo / Vice Minister of Justice : There are doubts about whether dispatching prosecutors as it is now will remain effective based solely on warrant reviews.]

Stating that all institutional overhauls cannot be accomplished at once, President Lee called for inter-ministerial consultations to provide supplements.

[President Lee Jae-myung : The Minister of the Interior and Safety and the Minister of Justice, you two are close, aren't you? Anyway, please consult well with each other.]

Neither President Lee nor Minister of Justice Chung Sung-ho, who recently expressed his intent to resign, made any particular remarks regarding Minister Chung's status today. However, a Cheong Wa Dae official conveyed that the prevailing atmosphere is that Minister Chung must fulfill his responsibilities until the launch of the Prosecution Service and the Serious Crime Investigation Agency.

(Photo courtesy of Ha Ryong and Yoon Hyung | Video by Park Ji-in)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.