'Jo Hee-de must immediately end nomination-power politics'

Han Byung-do, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, speaks at a floor strategy meeting at the National Assembly on Tuesday. [Yonhap]
Han Byung-do, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, speaks at a floor strategy meeting at the National Assembly on Tuesday. [Yonhap]

Han Byung-do, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, on Tuesday criticized independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon for repeatedly raising allegations of drug-approval lobbying against Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won, calling it "typical cabinet politics of the prosecutorial style — selectively pulling out only materials that serve one's own argument and weaponizing them."

Han made the remarks at a floor strategy meeting at the National Assembly, saying a confirmation hearing for Kim is scheduled for next week. "The nominee must provide a full account of every matter the public is curious about," he said.

Han said those conducting the vetting are free to scrutinize materials and testimony thoroughly and in detail through the proper confirmation hearing process, but drew a firm line against distortion. "What cannot be tolerated is the act of distorting the facts by mobilizing materials whose source cannot even be disclosed — under the pretext of vetting — along with selectively edited recordings," he said.

He then warned Han Dong-hoon to come clean before continuing to amplify the allegations. "Lawmaker Han must first make clear to the public from whom and through what channels he obtained the materials," he said. "If he has made claims that differ from the facts, he must bear the corresponding responsibility."

Han also urged Supreme Court Chief Justice Jo Hee-de to move swiftly to re-nominate justices. "With the retirement of Justice Lee Heung-gu on Monday, two Supreme Court justice seats are now vacant simultaneously," Han said. "The vacancy is not simply a matter of two empty seats. The Supreme Court's Third Division cannot even meet the quorum required for trials and will have to reassign justices from other smaller benches."

Han went on to say that the vacancy could disrupt the operation of the full bench, which is handling major cases including the three allegations surrounding Kim Keon Hee and the insurrection case involving former Minister Lee Sang-min. "Kim Keon Hee, Han Duck-soo and Lee Sang-min have all been referred to the full bench, so they could end up being the biggest beneficiaries of the shortage of Supreme Court justices," he said.

Han urged Chief Justice Jo to promptly proceed with re-nomination procedures from among already-recommended candidates. "I urge him to immediately end the nomination-power politics that holds the people's right to a trial hostage, and to show accountability before the Constitution and the public," he added.


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