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As the Democratic Party has vowed to complete the amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act containing the abolition of supplementary investigation rights within this week, tension between the ruling and opposition parties is escalating. When the People Power Party criticized it as "a sense of revenge against the prosecution," the Democratic Party fired back, claiming it is "evidence of the People Power Party's collusion with political prosecutors."

Reporter Go Jeong-hyeon has the story.

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The People Power Party zeroed in on Justice Minister Chung Sung-ho's indication of his intention to resign.

They questioned why Minister Chung would step down if the amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act being pushed by the Democratic Party were actually a good thing.

[Chung Jeom-sik / People Power Party Floor Leader: Is it not because he is afraid of bearing the responsibility for a 'crime chaos' following the abolition of supplementary investigation rights?]

Floor Leader Chung Jeom-sik raised his voice, asserting that if the Criminal Procedure Act is revised according to the Democratic Party's bill, a "crime chaos" will become a reality.

He intensified his criticism, claiming that the public has become experimental subjects for a hastily prepared bill due to the Democratic Party's thirst for revenge against the prosecution and its ambitions for the party national convention.

In response to the People Power Party, the Democratic Party fired back, calling it evidence of the opposition party's collusion with political prosecutors.

They argued that the People Power Party is taking the side of political prosecutors who have monopolized investigative and indicting powers and abused their authority, using the issue as a tool for political strife.

[Han Byeong-do / Democratic Party Floor Leader: Stop this irresponsible and low-grade political strife aimed at obscuring the essence of prosecution reform, a historical task, and blinding and deafening the public.]

Regarding the amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act, Floor Leader Han Byeong-do emphasized that they will prepare watertight alternatives to ensure even stronger protection for socially vulnerable groups and victims while maintaining the nation's total investigative capacity.

He added that they will concurrently push for high-intensity prosecution and police reforms tailored to the public's expectations.

With the Democratic Party vowing to pass the Criminal Procedure Act amendment containing the abolition of supplementary investigation rights at the National Assembly plenary session the day after tomorrow, clashes between the rival parties appear inevitable as the People Power Party is expected to resist in parliamentary standing committees and elsewhere.

(Photo courtesy of Yonhap News / Video reporting: Oh Young-chun, Lee Seung-hwan / Video editing: Nam Il)