SEOUL, July 31 (Bernama-Yonhap) -- South Korean Acting Prosecutor General Koo Ja-hyeon offered to resign on Friday, shortly after the National Assembly, led by the ruling Democratic Party (DP), passed a bill aimed at abolishing the prosecution's direct investigative powers, Yonhap News Agency reported.
Koo told reporters on Friday evening that he had tendered his resignation to "take responsibility" for the passage of the contentious bill.
The revision to the Criminal Procedure Act passed the plenary session in a 175-2 vote with one abstention, after the Assembly voted in favour of a motion to end a filibuster launched by the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) the previous day.
Under the bill, the prosecution will be stripped of its authority to conduct direct investigations, including supplementary investigations. Prosecutors will instead be allowed to request judicial police officers to carry out supplementary investigations.
While underscoring the need for the prosecution to reflect on its failure to earn public trust, he said reform should not undermine the fundamental purpose of the prosecution system, which seeks to uncover the substantive truth and protect victims.
Koo reiterated his concerns about the revision, noting that it would prompt prosecutors to rely solely on investigative records to determine whether to indict and would make it more difficult to protect victims.
"The revision was passed without such considerations, and I cannot but hide my disappointment and despair," Koo said. "Even if the bill is sent to the government, I sincerely urge it to conduct a review to ensure that it does not create any policy gaps or fall short of protecting the public."
-- BERNAMA-YONHAP