Cheon Jun-ho, acting floor leader of the Democratic Party, and members of the special committee on the state audit, are submitting the 'Special Prosecutor Act to Investigate Fabrication of Prosecutions by Yoon Seok-yeol's Political Prosecutors' to the National Assembly's Legislative Affairs Office on the 30th. [Yonhap News]  

The Democratic Party has abruptly proposed a special prosecutor bill to investigate allegations of fabricated prosecutions by the Yoon Seok-yeol administration's prosecutors in cases such as the Ssangbangul North Korea remittance and the Daejang-dong development scandal.

Although the Democratic Party had initially only stated its intention to propose the bill quickly, it submitted the legislation to the National Assembly immediately after the 'State Audit to Investigate Fabrication of Prosecutions by Yoon Seok-yeol's Political Prosecutors' effectively concluded today.

Cheon Jun-ho, acting floor leader, along with Park Sung-joon, the ruling party's whip for the special committee, and Lee Geon-tae, a member of the committee, submitted the 'Act on the Appointment of Special Prosecutors to Investigate the Truth of Allegations of Fabricated Investigations and Prosecutions by the Prosecution Service, National Intelligence Service, and Board of Audit and Inspection of the Yoon Seok-yeol Administration' to the National Assembly today.

The scope of the special prosecutor's investigation as defined in the bill includes the prosecution and indictment processes related to allegations of corruption in the development of Daejang-dong and Wirye New Town; allegations of financial impropriety against Kim Yong, former vice president of the Democratic Research Institute; the Ssangbangul North Korea remittance case; allegations of fabrication of statistics, including real estate data; the case of the shooting of a public official in the West Sea; and allegations of false reporting intended to defame former President Yoon Seok-yeol.

The bill stipulates that if the special prosecutor deems it necessary after considering the progress of the investigation, they can request the transfer of cases being investigated, prosecuted, or maintained in prosecution by prosecutors, and the receiving agencies must comply with this request.

It also specifies that the special prosecutor will carry out the task of maintaining prosecutions (including deciding whether to maintain prosecutions) for cases transferred to them.

Although the special prosecutor bill does not explicitly grant the special prosecutor the authority to withdraw indictments in cases already brought by the prosecution, it is interpreted as implicitly providing a basis for the special prosecutor to withdraw prosecutions.

In response, Cheon, the acting floor leader, stated, "An independent special prosecutor will be able to confirm various facts through investigation and take necessary follow-up measures accordingly." Lee Geon-tae also commented, "This is a matter for an independent special prosecutor to determine."

The special prosecutor will be recommended by the Democratic Party and the People Power Party, which are the negotiating blocs, and the Cho Kuk Innovation Party, which has the largest number of lawmakers among non-negotiating blocs, with one recommendation each.

The President will then appoint one of these individuals.

The investigation period is 90 days, but it can be extended twice by 30 days each, at the special prosecutor's own discretion.

Furthermore, with the President's approval, it can be extended by an additional 30 days, for a total investigation period of up to 180 days.

The Democratic Party plans to process the special prosecutor bill next month.

The People Power Party criticized the introduction of the special prosecutor, arguing that the state audit proved that fabricated prosecutions did not occur and that the purpose of the special prosecutor is a "self-pardon" to withdraw the current President's case.

In response, Kim Hyun-jung, deputy floor leader of the Democratic Party, told reporters, "Is there not a provision in Article 11 of the Constitution that states equality before the law?" she said. "Just as the President should not receive special treatment, it is also not in line with the spirit of the Constitution for the President to have to endure harm simply because they are the President."