Prime Minister Han Seong-sook speaks at a Cabinet meeting chaired by President Lee Jae Myung at Cheong Wa Dae on Tuesday. [Yonhap]
Prime Minister Han Seong-sook speaks at a Cabinet meeting chaired by President Lee Jae Myung at Cheong Wa Dae on Tuesday. [Yonhap]

The government on Tuesday approved a bill extending the investigation period of the secondary omnibus special prosecutor, which covers areas left unresolved by the three existing special prosecutor probes into insurrection, the Kim Keon Hee case and the Marine corporal Chae Hae-byeong case.

The Cabinet passed the amendment to the omnibus special prosecutor act at an extraordinary session held at Government Complex Seoul, presided over by Prime Minister Han Seong-sook.

The amendment extends the special prosecutor's investigation period by an additional 30 days — from Friday through Aug. 23.

The special prosecutor, which launched in February, had previously extended its investigation period twice under the existing law.

The bill also adds "obstruction of audits" by civil servants related to cases under investigation as a new target of the probe, and expands the number of civil servants seconded to the special prosecutor's office from 130 to 150.

It also allows up to 10 special investigators with at least five years of legal experience to be designated as trial maintenance lawyers, tasked with sustaining prosecutions in cases the special prosecutor has already indicted.

A newly added provision requires the omnibus special prosecutor to consult with the three existing special prosecutors before reversing their decisions or taking any action that could affect the maintenance of ongoing prosecutions.

The National Assembly passed the bill earlier Tuesday in a plenary session led by the Democratic Party of Korea. Lawmakers from the People Power Party and the Reform Party did not participate in the vote.


oskymoon@heraldcorp.com