Both new prosecution agencies set to launch without leaders

Kim Ji-yong, a former prosecutor nominated as the first head of the new serious crimes agency, faces fierce opposition from hardline pro-government lawmakers; the prosecution service is also leaderless after more than a year without a prosecutor general

Kim Ji-yong, nominee for the inaugural director of the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency, arrives at his office in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on Sept. 17. [Yonhap]

South Korea's sweeping overhaul of its criminal justice system will see the Prosecution Service abolished and replaced by two new agencies: the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency and a new Public Prosecution Service. Yet both agencies are set to open without a leader in place. Kim Ji-yong, a lawyer and former prosecutor nominated as the first director of the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency, has yet to face a confirmation hearing, while the Public Prosecution Service is launching after the prosecutor general post has sat vacant for more than a year.

According to legal circles and the National Assembly, Cheong Wa Dae had not sent a formal confirmation hearing request to the Assembly as of Monday, even though the Ministry of Interior and Safety nominated Kim as the inaugural director on Sept. 7. No date has been set for his hearing. Officials within the ministry's agency launch preparation team have privately expressed concern that the appointment process has in effect ground to a halt.

The Ministry of Interior and Safety described Kim as an expert with extensive experience in criminal justice. But the process has stalled in the face of fierce opposition from hardline figures aligned with the ruling camp. Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae, Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Kim Yong-min and Rebuilding Korea Party lawmaker Park Eun-jeong have labeled Kim a "pro-Yoon prosecutor" and a "prosecutorialist," arguing that appointing him would amount to a reversal of prosecution reform.

The hardliners point to three specific concerns: that Kim was in the supervisory chain as deputy chief of the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office when former prosecutor Jeong Jin-ung was indicted for assaulting then-prosecutor Han Dong-hoon, now an independent lawmaker; that he was in the supervisory chain as head of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office's criminal division when former Vice Justice Minister Kim Hak-eui was indicted over an emergency travel ban; and that, in his capacity as head of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office's criminal division, he publicly opposed legislation stripping prosecutors of their investigative powers.

Kim has said he was not the final decision-maker in either the Jeong case or the Kim Hak-eui travel ban case. On his opposition to the legislation, he said his stance was not against the principle of separating investigation from prosecution, but rather reflected concern that proceeding without adequate safeguards for vulnerable people and crime victims would create a dangerous gap. He has also said he cannot be considered "pro-Yoon" given that he ordered a reinvestigation into the case involving former President Yoon Suk Yeol's mother-in-law.

Lee Jeong-hyeon, the newly appointed deputy chief of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office who will serve as acting prosecutor general, arrives at the office in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on Wednesday. [Yonhap]

The Public Prosecution Service is also launching without a permanent head. The agency will retain the title of prosecutor general for its leader and will handle decisions on whether to bring charges and maintain prosecutions in cases referred by police and other investigative bodies. That post has been empty for more than a year under the current Prosecution Service structure, since former Prosecutor General Shim Woo-jeong stepped down last July. Lee Jeong-hyeon, who had been serving as chief of the Suwon High Prosecutors' Office, was recently appointed acting prosecutor general, following two previous acting chiefs, No Man-seop and Gu Ja-hyeon.

The Public Prosecution Service will decide whether to indict cases referred by police, the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency and other investigative bodies, and will maintain those prosecutions in court. Its task has been made considerably harder, however, by the government's announcement that it will reduce the number of prosecutors — a move that came in response to hardline pro-government figures accusing the reforms of backsliding. Under current law, the authorized prosecutor headcount stands at 2,292; the government plans to cut that to roughly 80 to 85 percent of that figure.

The Ministry of Justice, which oversees the Public Prosecution Service, has also been without a minister for more than a month since former Justice Minister Jeong Seong-ho left the post last month. The justice minister holds command authority over the prosecutor general. Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Seung-won had originally been nominated for the post but withdrew after a series of allegations emerged, including that he had sought favors related to a new drug approval.

bell@heraldcorp.com