President Lee Jae Myung and Minister of Justice Jeong Seong-ho, who recently tendered his resignation, engaged in a tense back-and-forth over the proposed revisions to the Criminal Procedure Act during a briefing on the 5th. It was reported that the previous day President Lee told Minister Jeong, “Do well and hang in there,” prompting interpretations that he effectively dissuaded Jeong from stepping down.

That day, presiding over the briefing at the Blue House State Guest House, President Lee received reports from the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety on the operation of the joint police-prosecution investigation headquarters under the amended Criminal Procedure Act. When President Lee asked Minister Jeong, “The Ministry of Justice must also in fact have many concerns, must it not?”, Jeong replied, “At present the legal basis for operating the joint headquarters is very weak. From our perspective it is effectively nonexistent.”

President Lee said, “If it is not prohibited, (prosecutors can also conduct) investigations,” and Minister Jeong again countered, “That is not so,” adding, “When prosecutors of the Prosecution Office participate in investigations, issues of admissibility of evidence arise and prevent them from conducting investigations, so unless the basis for operating the joint headquarters is made clear in the investigation rules, there could be significant problems in the process of maintaining prosecutions.” In response, President Lee said, “If the investigation rules are the issue, then we can make them,” and Minister Jeong stated, “As we see it now, there is no provision providing the basis.”

When President Lee asked, “I have not read the amended Criminal Procedure Act, so under the amended law does it state that prosecutors must not investigate (within the joint headquarters)?”, Minister Jeong replied, “Yes, that is correct. The legal basis for any investigative activity has been eliminated.” When President Lee sought views on remedial measures such as requesting reinvestigation of cases not referred for prosecution, Jeong said, “Because they are not their own cases, the level of interest among prosecutors will decline,” and added, “What we are concerned about are cases without complainants or victims, such as ex officio cases; if the police close them at the first stage, there will be even less interest.”

President Lee also joked to Minister of the Interior and Safety Yoon Ho-jung and Minister Jeong, “The two of you at the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Ministry of Justice have always been close, have you not?” When Minister Yoon said, “There has never been a time we were not close,” President Lee replied, “Then why is the Minister of Justice shaking his head? It seems the relationship between the two of you could become very bad; in any case, please cooperate well.”

In the subsequent remarks from the citizen participation panel, when one attendee called for expanding prisons, President Lee also said, “Our Minister Jeong Seong-ho has gained a comrade.” Minister Jeong responded, “This is what I have always advocated. I will pursue it more actively.”

The face-to-face meeting between President Lee and Minister Jeong that day drew attention as it took place after Jeong publicly offered to resign. In particular, since Jeong tendered his resignation after expressing opposition to the complete abolition of the authority of prosecutors to order supplementary investigations, the exchange between President Lee and Minister Jeong over the amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act also drew notice.

It was reported that the previous day President Lee told Minister Jeong, “Do well and hang in there.” According to Blue House officials and others, at a closed Cabinet meeting the previous day, President Lee received a report from Minister Jeong on the status of correctional facilities, and as the meeting ended he stood up, smiled, and made the remark in a joking manner. The remark by the President has been interpreted as a request that he remain in the post of Minister of Justice a bit longer, with the launch of the Prosecution Office and the Serious Crimes Investigation Office scheduled for October.