Cha Kyu-geun, member of the National Assembly of the Cho Kuk Innovation Party

Cha Kyu-geun, member of the National Assembly of the Cho Kuk Innovation Party

Suwon District Prosecutors' Office needs to root out the suspicion of 'manipulation of conciliatory statements for drinking'

The Cho Kuk Innovation Party recognizes the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office's controversial "manipulation of statements to appease alcohol" as a shocking incident that shakes the foundation of the rule of law. We hope that the truth of all the suspicions will be revealed in a clear way.

In addition to the facts of the allegations, the Cho Kuk Innovation Party is paying attention to the fundamental institutional problems that have led to these allegations.  

According to Lee Hwa-young's lawyer, the prosecution has called Lee 72 times to the prosecution's office since he was arrested in October 2022. 53 of them did not leave records. They left records only 19 times. The reason they are called as prosecutors is for investigation. It is natural to leave a record when you do an investigation. However, the summons investigation that leaves a record is just over one-quarter.  

The Ministry of Justice and the Supreme Prosecutors' Office are well aware of these problems. The Ministry of Justice and the Supreme Prosecutors' Office established the Guidelines for Requesting Attendance and Investigation of Inmates in January 2022 after confirming a number of inappropriate investigation practices that cause distrust and criticism of the prosecution's direct investigation through a joint inspection into the case of former Prime Minister Han Myung-sook. It has said that it will make it mandatory to prepare written information on prisoners' investigation. According to the former deputy governor's investigation process, inappropriate investigation practices, which the Ministry of Justice and the prosecution even said would improve by establishing guidelines, still do not seem to be eradicated. This is also a serious violation of human rights in violation of the Justice Ministry's rules for investigating human rights protection. If the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office faithfully followed the guidelines established by the Ministry of Justice and the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, there is no reason for suspicion of "manipulation of conciliatory statements."  

Most Koreans may think it is natural for the prosecution to have correctional officials escort their prisoners to the prosecution for questioning. However, it has been repeatedly pointed out that this practice also needs to be improved. It is an unreasonable and inappropriate investigation practice that ignores the human rights of prisoners and prioritizes only the convenience of the prosecution.  

Therefore, in 2020, the Justice and Prosecution Reform Committee recommended that prisoners be restricted from attending the prosecutor's office. If an investigation was needed, the prosecutor recommended visiting a correctional facility or conducting a remote video investigation. This is because the detainees were frequently pressured and bullied by calling them to the prosecution office and locking them in waiting facilities without investigating them.  

Even though the Legal Affairs and Prosecution Reform Committee recommended it, the prosecution did not follow it. According to the 2023 Correctional Statistical Yearbook, 34,691 cases of inmates attending the prosecution office in 2022 alone. On the other hand, only 30 cases were investigated by prosecutors visiting correctional facilities. The implementation rate of the recommendations of the Legal Affairs and Prosecution Reform Committee was less than 0.1%. In other words, the practice of investigating prisoners by attaching them to the prosecution office continues. During the same period, the number of police visits to correctional facilities reached 46,934. The prosecution's behavior is inconsistent even in terms of equity of investigative agencies.

The National Human Rights Commission of Korea has also pointed out this problem. The commission pointed out that the practice of having inmates attend the prosecution office in December 2023 for questioning is based on the prosecution's administrative convenience without legal grounds. It recommended that the prosecution visit correctional facilities in principle.

Both the Justice and Prosecution Reform Commission and the National Human Rights Commission of Korea pointed out that it is also a problem that prison guards are in charge of both escorting and guarding prisoners in the entire process of having inmates present at the prosecution office and recommending improvement. This is because they violate their human rights by imposing administrative duties on correctional officials without a legal basis.  

If the prosecution had visited a correctional facility and investigated the former lieutenant governor, the controversy over the alleged "manipulation of statements to appease alcohol" would never have occurred. Despite continuous calls for improvement and a midnight declaration, the prosecution has not changed at all. The prosecution's chronic and inappropriate investigative practices are the most fundamental cause of the controversy.

The Cho Kuk Innovation Party promises. We will change the investigation practice that ignores the human rights of detainees and prioritizes the convenience of prosecutors. The 22nd National Assembly will institutionalize prosecutors to visit correctional facilities to investigate. If the police are doing it, there is no reason why prosecutors can't do it. If suspicions arise within the prosecution office that something like "manipulating statements about conciliation of alcohol" has happened, there is no good thing for prosecutors. The soil itself should be changed so that such suspicions cannot be rooted out. When prosecutors visit correctional facilities to investigate, correctional officials do not have to be mobilized to escort prisoners, guard them, and observe investigations without legal basis. They will be able to stick to their original duties, such as correction and edification. Correctional officials are not employees of the prosecution office. They are not even subordinates of prosecutors. This is common sense.

The Cho Kuk Innovation Party does.  
I will remove the prosecution's irrational and abnormal investigation privileges. I will correct the prosecution's investigation practices against the rule of law.

Thank you.  

April 30, 2024
Cho Kuk Innovation Party Member-elect Cha Kyu-geun