Minister Jeong Seong-ho will begin a 'relay lightning meeting' with the press corps starting from the 21st. Originally scheduled for September, the dinner meeting has been moved up and will be divided into three sessions to meet with reporters consecutively. To this end, Minister Jeong conveyed to the press corps, "It's hard to wait until September. I want to meet and discuss quickly."
The rapid movement of Minister Jeong seems to be influenced by President Lee Jae-myung's directives regarding 'prosecutorial reform.' During a Cabinet meeting on the 18th, President Lee stated, "(Prosecutorial reform) must go through a public discussion process. Please ensure it does not become hasty." In response, Minister Jeong proposed the relay lightning meeting to the press corps the very next day, the 19th.
A legal professional with experience in the Ministry of Justice noted, "It seems that Minister Jeong is trying to quickly implement the president's directive of the 'public discussion process,' suggesting that meeting in small groups rather than a single dinner with the entire press corps might be more effective for gathering opinions and promoting policies."
Previously, Minister Jeong had also proactively taken measures related to prosecutorial reform. The Moon Jae-in administration had reduced the crimes subject to direct investigation by the prosecution to two areas, but the Yoon Suk-yeol administration had significantly expanded this through amendments to enforcement decrees. On the 8th, Minister Jeong instructed that the enforcement decree be amended to limit direct investigations by the prosecution again to corruption and economic crimes. Since legal revisions related to prosecutorial reform inevitably take time, Minister Jeong has preemptively responded within the scope of possible enforcement decree amendments.
Regarding Minister Jeong's recent activities, a legal professional remarked, "It makes me rethink the points he mentioned in his inauguration speech, such as 'speed,' 'proactive,' and 'preemptive.'" In his inauguration speech, Minister Jeong said, "Let's reexamine whether there are no civil infringement cases piled up on the desk and accelerate our pace." He further stated, "The Ministry of Justice should respond proactively to changes in the current policy environment to protect the public and support economic revitalization." He also said that in relation to prosecutorial reform, "as the relevant government agency, we will actively and preemptively devise measures."
Following reports on the 'loss of the Buddhist monk's talisman incident,' Minister Jeong immediately ordered an inspection of the Southern District Prosecutors' Office the next day. He also swiftly replaced the warden of the Seoul Detention Center in connection with issues regarding former President Yoon Suk-yeol.