New Body to Probe Erring Politicians

The Supreme Public Prosecutors Office decided Thursday to establish an independent body for investigating politically sensitive cases. The office said the new unit will investigate politicians and government officials free from political influence. Advocacy groups and opposition lawmakers have said that prosecutors' investigations are biased in favor of the ruling party when prominent politicians and government officials were involved.

Prosecutors said the new entity will be completely independent of the Supreme Public Prosecutors Office in terms of personnel administration and budget. Two senior prosecutors with a minimum guaranteed term of two years will be assigned to the new institution.

While such measures provide for a significant level of independence from the prosecutor-general, some legal and political analysts are skeptical that the new institution will be able to conduct investigations without politics leading in.

Although their terms are guaranteed, the senior prosecutors heading up the new body will not be able to fully exercise their authority as long as the body takes orders from the prosecutor-general, analysts said. Many added that the institution will not be much different from the existing Central Investigation Department in the Supreme Public Prosecutors Office.

"Was it ever a matter of organization that brought criticism?" quipped a former prosecutor, who left the office to go into private practice.

He said more important than an organizational change was resolve on the part of the ruling camp and senior prosecutors to stay out of sensitive investigations.

This is not the first time an organizational change has been proposed in the prosecutors office. In 1999, the Justice Ministry tried to no avail to set up a special unit for investigating corruption in the political community. That plan left the special unit under direct control of the prosecutor-general.

Meanwhile, prosecutors debated Thursday a law revision which would allow junior prosecutors to disobey any unlawful orders issued by senior prosecutors.

by Chang Chung-hoon