Ruling party vows to pass prosecution reform bills Wednesday
Rep. Park Hong-keun, third from left, floor leader of the Democratic Party, speaks at a party meeting, April 27. Yonhap
The ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) vowed to pass two controversial bills on prosecution reform through a plenary session of the National Assembly, Wednesday, despite strong objections from the main opposition People Power Party (PPP).
DPK floor leader Rep. Park Hong-keun said the party will convene the plenary session later in the day and pass the bills "without fail," after railroading the legislation through the judiciary committee earlier Wednesday.
The bills are aimed at reducing and ultimately removing the prosecution's investigative powers.
Park told a party meeting that the DPk "will not be swayed any more by the PPP and President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol" over their objection to the bills that were originally agreed on by the two main parties.
The DPK has justified its move by claiming the PPP broke its promise when it demanded a review of the compromise deal that called for curtailing the prosecution's investigative right to two types of crime ― corruption and economic ― before removing it completely.
The agreement represented a breakthrough compromise between the rival parties that had sparred fiercely for weeks over the DPK's headlong push for legislation that would immediately deprive the prosecution of all investigative powers.
The deal, however, drew unexpectedly strong criticism from the public that lawmakers were colluding to shield themselves from prosecution investigations as the agreement calls for excluding crimes related to elections and public officials from prosecution probes.
Yoon, a former top prosecutor who is set to take office on May 10, voiced concerns about the bills, calling for the entire political community to reflect deeply on what is right in order to defend the Constitution and protect the people. (Yonhap)