The confirmation hearing for Minister of Justice nominee Kim Seung-won is increasingly likely to proceed without witnesses or reference persons. The People Power Party requested that Genencell founder Kang Se-chan and a broker surnamed Yang, among others, be called as witnesses in connection with alleged lobbying for approval of a COVID-19 treatment clinical trial, but the Democratic Party of Korea rejected adopting any witnesses or reference persons, saying it was an "already concluded case."
The National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee held a full meeting on the morning of the 9th and approved the hearing plan and requests for materials for the nominee. However, it decided to revisit the requests for witness and reference person appearances after consultations between ruling and opposition party whips.
Ruling party whip Kim Eui-gyeom of the Democratic Party and opposition party whip Park Hyeong-su of the People Power Party met the previous day to set the witness and reference person lists. The People Power Party proposed summoning a total of 48 people—44 witnesses and 4 reference persons. The Democratic Party, however, reportedly made clear that morning it could not accept the list proposed by the People Power Party.
At the full meeting, Rep. Park Hyeong-su said, "The Democratic Party whip said they would get back to us after consulting with lawmakers. We waited all night, but there was no contact," adding, "Only this morning did they convey that Democratic Party lawmakers believe not a single witness can be adopted."
He added, "Public attention is focused on the nominee's hearing. It is the duty of the committee and the hearing to identify and resolve public suspicions," saying, "But isn't this effectively an empty hearing with no witnesses?"
Rep. Lee Jong-bae of the People Power Party also issued a commentary the same day, saying, "If the Democratic Party refuses witnesses, it is no different from admitting that nominee Kim Seung-won had an improper relationship with Yang and others and that there was lobbying and corruption," and criticizing, "The public will not tolerate appointing as Minister of Justice a criminal suspect who should be investigated, all for the sake of President Lee Jae-myung alone."
Rep. Kim Eui-gyeom said, "(Regarding the nominee's alleged wrongdoing,) even though 11 prosecutors were assigned, they ultimately could not even indict," adding, "We must not bring back a failed case for endless repetition." Seo Young-kyo, the committee chair from the same party, said, "We have never adopted that many witnesses for a confirmation hearing, and it is common to proceed without witnesses."
Ruling and opposition whips on the committee agreed to continue talks until midnight, but given the wide gap over the witness list, a deal appears unlikely. Under the Confirmation Hearing Act, a summons must be delivered at least five days before the hearing to legally compel attendance.