Top prosecutor offers to resign

By Kim Se-jeong

Departing top prosecutor Kim Soo-nam

The nation’s top prosecutor offered to resign Thursday, two days after the presidential election that brought victory to liberal candidate Moon Jae-in.

Offering his resignation, Prosecutor General Kim Soo-nam said, “The investigation into former President Park Geun-hye is over. The presidential election has been completed without any problem. I believe I have done my job and that it’s time for me to leave.”

His departure is earlier than mandated ― his term ends Dec. 1.

Kim’s resignation will likely pave the way for President Moon to press for his much-touted reform of the prosecution.

Kim recalled his decision to arrest Park in his last remarks.

“It was a tough decision to arrest her because she appointed me to lead the prosecution. It was very difficult as a person. However, I went ahead, reminded of the importance of law and order.”

People took to the street for months-long candlelit protests amid a public outcry against Park for her involvement in a corruption scandal involving her confidant Choi Soon-sil.

They pushed the National Assembly to impeach Park and for the Constitutional Court to confirm her removal from office in March. She is on trial at the moment and expected to make an appearance in court later this month.

He said he had thought of quitting the day Park was arrested, but couldn't because “it was irresponsible for me to resign like that, given that I was tasked with getting the presidential election done safely, and the president and minister of justice posts were all vacant.”

It was extremely rare for the top prosecutor to order an investigation into the person who gave him a job. However, public pressure for Park’s arrest was too strong to overcome for him, and many projected Kim would leave the post right after her arrest.

During Park’s four-year presidency, Kim, as a high-profile prosecutor, stood by Park faithfully. He was appointed to lead the prosecution in October 2015.

In 2013, Kim indicted Lee Seok-ki, the leader of the far-left United Progressive Party, on charges of being pro-North Korea and plotting a rebellion against the government in Seoul. Lee is currently serving a 12-year prison term and his party was dissolved.

In October 2014, Kim also indicted a Japanese journalist on charges of defaming President Park over an article he wrote where he raised questions about Park’s whereabouts on the day of the ferry Sewol incident on April 16, 2014. The journalist was acquitted.