The People Power Party proposed the formation of a special committee on judicial reform to the Democratic Party of Korea, which is pushing for the so-called 'four laws on judicial reform'. Currently, the bill being pursued by the Democratic Party is criticized for the issue of excessive authority of the National Investigative Commission under the Prime Minister, necessitating discussions between the ruling and opposition parties.
Song Eon-seok, chairperson of the People Power Party's emergency response committee and floor leader, said at a meeting of floor leaders held at the National Assembly on the morning of the 11th, "We fundamentally agree on the necessity of judicial reform," and proposed, "Let's form a special committee on judicial reform in the 22nd National Assembly and discuss judicial reform."
Chairperson Song noted, "President Lee Jae-myung mentioned judicial reform during his press conference one month after taking office, saying that a framework could be established before Chuseok," and said, "Those in the running for party leader, including Representative Jeong Cheong-rae and Representative Park Chan-dae, declared that they would finish judicial reform before Chuseok."
He emphasized, "The push for the dismantling of the prosecution by the Lee Jae-myung administration is a more radical and rushed effort than the complete deprivation of investigative authority by the Moon Jae-in administration three years ago," adding, "Attorney Kim Jong-min pointed out that although the president currently only indirectly influences prosecutorial investigations, if the four laws on judicial reform favored by the Democratic Party pass, the National Investigation Commission under the Prime Minister could wield personnel power and directly seize control."
Chairperson Song mentioned the establishment of a special committee on judicial reform in the 18th National Assembly, saying, "After holding 64 meetings and listening to expert opinions 72 times, we received praise for remarkable reform achievements," and added, "For important issues like judicial reform, direction is more important than speed. If hasty legislative rush is enforced, the disadvantaged and the common people will directly bear the consequences."
Jang Dong-hyuk, the opposition party member of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, criticized, "If you look into the bill, you cannot hide your shock at the incompetence of the Democratic Party," and stated, "Authority for investigations is divided among four agencies, but they established a National Investigation Commission to merge these agencies into one. The only countries with similar regulations are China, North Korea, and Russia."
He continued, "Although they declared that they would dismantle the prosecution to remove the malignant cells of a political prosecution, it will ultimately lead to the birth of a monster-like political police by metastasizing into all four agencies," and emphasized, "As we continue to review bills that have legal texts where they should not be and do not have legal texts where they should be, the public will be shocked by ignorance and ineptitude."