Lee urges ministers to resolve rift over prosecution reform bill

President Lee Jae Myung on Wednesday called out Interior and Safety Minister Yun Ho-jung and Justice Minister Jeong Seong-ho over their disagreement on a proposed revision to the Criminal Procedure Act that would separate prosecutors' investigative and indictment powers, quipping that "the two of you seem to have had a serious falling-out" and urging them to resolve it.

At a ministry briefing Wednesday afternoon at Cheong Wa Dae's Yeongbingwan, Lee questioned the two ministers on the separation of prosecution and investigation powers and on the scope of prosecutors' authority within a future joint police-prosecution investigation unit.

"I wouldn't say the current situation has created an enormously serious problem," Lee said. "We're overhauling a system that has been in place for decades, so it won't be possible to eliminate every issue and transition cleanly to a new one. There will naturally be friction, and it will take time, cost and effort to adapt and adjust." He added that officials must "draw out every problem that could arise and do their utmost to prepare for it."

Lee also urged prosecutors to pay close attention to cases referred without charges. "Since prosecutors will no longer officially conduct investigations, they should not treat referred cases carelessly — reviewing them carefully is itself a key part of protecting victims," he said. "They can order a reinvestigation if necessary."

He then turned to the two ministers and asked with a laugh, "You two are close, aren't you? Or are you not?"

When Yun replied, "We have never been anything but close," Lee shot back: "The justice minister is shaking his head. It looks like the two of you have had a serious falling-out — please do work things out."

Lee then directed both ministers to "prepare for every possible scenario at the working level" and said they should keep looking for solutions. "These things don't get resolved in one go," he said. "Report to me in advance on how to handle the joint investigation unit — I don't think there's much time."

Earlier in the briefing, Yun and Jeong had revealed their differences over how the joint police-prosecution investigation unit should operate following passage of the revised Criminal Procedure Act. Yun said the relationship with prosecutors "has not been set as a priority, but joint investigations can be requested," prompting Lee to ask, "So not all joint police-prosecution units need to be disbanded?"

Yun said they could continue, but added, "Prosecutors participating in a cooperative investigation would not be conducting direct investigations themselves."

Jeong pushed back, saying "the legal basis for the joint unit's investigations is weak." When Lee asked, "If it's not prohibited, can't they just do it?" Jeong replied: "No. There are issues with admissibility of evidence. Because prosecutors are barred from conducting investigations, the limits are unclear, and there could be problems if that is not clearly maintained in investigative guidelines."

Lee pressed further: "Does that mean a provision authorizing cooperative investigations has been written into the law? The Interior Ministry says it has, but the Justice Ministry says it's inadequate? What does the Supreme Prosecutors' Office think?"

Park Gyu-hyeong, head of planning and coordination at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, said his office also had doubts. "Frankly, we have some questions about whether the joint unit can be maintained in the same form as before, now that the law has passed," he said. He noted that some lawmakers' amendment proposals during the legislative process had included provisions for a joint response body, "but that was ultimately not enacted into law."

Park added that "cooperation is needed to ensure the country's capacity to respond to crime does not weaken," but said further deliberation was required on "how exactly that cooperation can be structured."

Lee pressed again: "Under the revised Criminal Procedure Act, are prosecutors prohibited from conducting investigations? Does it say they cannot?" Jeong replied: "There is no such prohibition — but any legal basis for investigations has been entirely removed."

Vice Justice Minister Lee Jin-su added that the revised act "is designed so that prosecutors do not exercise investigative authority at all, and that has been clearly defined as a feature of the law — so if prosecutors directly intervene in investigations going forward, procedural disputes could arise." He said the ministry had concluded that "the current structure of the joint unit would face considerable legal controversy and would be difficult to maintain as is."

Lee responded that things "should be fine until the law takes effect," adding that "anything done before then will remain valid."

Yun said he expected that going forward, "rather than a joint police-prosecution investigation unit, what will likely emerge is a joint public prosecutors-police investigation unit." He said prosecutors without direct investigative authority could still "offer opinions on investigations," suggesting in effect that a cooperative arrangement remained possible.