3 Supreme Court nominees approved

Confirmations come amid dispute on religious, political inclinations

By Chung Min-uck

National Assembly approved bills for the appointment of three justice nominees to the Supreme Court at a parliamentary plenary session, Wednesday.

The new justice nominees put to vote are Kim Shin, 55, head of the Ulsan District Court, Kim Chang-suk, 56, head of the Supreme Court Library, and Ko Young-hwan, 57, director of the Court Administration Office.

They were each approved by votes of 162 to 107 with one abstention, 173 to 94 with three abstentions and 226 to 39 votes with five abstentions, respectively.

They will soon fill the empty seats in the nation’s Supreme Court. The appointment came as out of 13 top court judges including the Chief Justice, four retired on July 10 after completing their six-year terms. Following their retirement President Lee Myung-bak nominated new judges on June 15 but the parliament failed to approve the related bill due to a political standoff between rival parties ahead of the presidential election in December.

The ruling Saenuri Party and the main opposition Democratic United Party (DUP) have disputed the eligibility of the fourth Supreme Court justice nominee Kim Byung-wha as the DUP lawmakers accused him of alleged real estate speculation and other suspected wrongdoings such as asking for favors from the Military Manpower Administration on behalf of his son’s military service. The ruling Saenuri Party insisted on his innocence.

The parties ended the standoff only after Kim Byung-hwa withdrew his nomination last Thursday citing disruptions in the workings of the Supreme Court.

Looking at Wednesday’s voting results, observers say most of the opposition lawmakers have voted against the two would-be Supreme Court judges _ Kim Chang-suk and Kim Shin. The ruling Saenuri Party has 150 seats in the Assembly, followed by the DUP with 127, the minor opposition Unified Progressive Party with 13, and another minor party and independent lawmakers with 10.

The DUP earlier called on the two judges to give up as well.

During the earlier parliamentary confirmation hearings, Kim Chang-suk faced a severe backlash as he is a graduate of Korea University, the same as the President. Since Lee took office in 2008, the administration has been criticized for appointing many Korea University graduates to top posts. Kim was also accused of ruling in favor of big conglomerates.

The DUP also denounced Kim Shin for taking a pro-Christianity stance during trials.

The parliamentary approval will be followed by President Lee formally appointing the three Supreme Court justice nominees.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has reportedly started the selection process for a new nominee to replace Kim Byung-wha.