A bill to establish the Serious Crime Investigation Agency (SCIA) in Oct. this year passed the National Assembly's plenary session on the 21st.
At the plenary session that day, the National Assembly approved the SCIA bill, led by the Democratic Party and other pro-government parties.
The People Power Party pushed back, calling it "destruction of the prosecution" and "the worst revision," and tried to block it with a filibuster (a lawful obstruction of proceedings through unlimited debate). But after 24 hours of filibuster debate, the Democratic Party, in accordance with the relevant law, ended the debate by vote together with minor progressive parties and then put it to a vote.
Earlier, at a plenary session the previous day, the National Assembly passed the Public Prosecution Office Act, which sets out the organizational structure of the Public Prosecution Office and the powers of its prosecutors. With the Public Prosecution Office Act followed by the Serious Crime Investigation Agency Act passing the plenary session, the Democratic Party's prosecution reform legislation to separate investigation and indictment moved into its final stage.
Under the bill that passed, the SCIA will be established as an agency under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety (MOIS) Minister, and its main investigative targets are the six major crimes: ▲ corruption ▲ economy ▲ defense industry ▲ drugs ▲ insurrection and external subversion ▲ cybercrime.
So-called legal distortion cases, crimes committed while in office by officials of the Public Prosecution Office, police, Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO), and the courts were also included within the SCIA's investigative scope.
SCIA investigators are designated officials in special service, with a single grade system from levels 1 to 9. Open recruitment is the principle, but career hiring is allowed for those with job-related knowledge, experience, skills, or research achievements.
Under the Public Prosecution Office Act passed the previous day, the Public Prosecution Office, in line with the principle of separating investigation and indictment, will handle only indictments and will operate under a three-tier system of the Public Prosecution Office, Metropolitan Public Prosecution Offices, and Local Public Prosecution Offices.
The existing power of the prosecution to direct and supervise special judicial police officers was abolished. Instead, a clause prohibiting "abuse of authority" was newly established. In addition, by specifying "dismissal" as grounds for disciplinary action against prosecutors, dismissal became possible without impeachment proceedings.
With the legislative procedures for the Public Prosecution Office and SCIA laws completed in the National Assembly, the Democratic Party plans to continue prosecution reform by handling amendments to the Criminal Procedure Act after the local elections in June.
Meanwhile, within the party, the issue in revising the Criminal Procedure Act is whether to grant supplementary investigation authority to Public Prosecution Office prosecutors. President Lee Jae-myung has said that exceptional supplementary investigation authority is necessary, but hard-liners in the party argue it should not be allowed.