A dangerous road

The absurd events surrounding complaints filed by Kim Jae-jung, the brother-in-law of Lee Myung-bak, a candidate of the Grand National Party (GNP), prove that Lee and the party have no stable philosophy.
It was reasonable of Kim to refuse demands made by Lee and the GNP that he withdraw the defamation lawsuit against Lee’s opponents and supporters of Park Geun-hye, another of the GNP’s candidates. His decision provides an interesting contrast between his steadfastness and the changeable GNP.
Now the ball is in the prosecutors’ court and they should investigate the case quickly and thoroughly.
The GNP and Lee didn’t have a clean conscience when they pushed Kim to withdraw the lawsuit. They only did so after prosecutors decided to investigate, a move which surprised them and made them form a gang to persuade Kim to withdraw.
They were worried about the unexpected results that an investigation might produce. Such an attitude made people suspect that their doubts about Lee have some basis.
Inside Lee’s camp, there were some who wanted to stick with the case and to follow it through, but they were overwhelmed by expediency.
The heads of the GNP have been accused of stepping outside their territory when they said what a citizen should do if he wants to regain his impaired reputation.
In fact, with Kim’s decision to press his case, all the GNP and Lee’s camp can do is wait for the prosecutors’ decision. This is the result of all their clever tricks.
We’ve said that the intervention of prosecutors in the elections, whether in a party primary or the presidential election, can cause adverse side effects.
When the prosecutors said they would provide a standard for the voters, we criticized them for arrogantly exceeding their authority. With Kim’s rejection, it seems that the prosecutors’ investigation has entered an irrevocable phase.
Prosecutors should drive carefully on this dangerous road. Their job is to reveal as much truth as the people require. If they go faster than the people want or cross this ethical line, they could cause a historic accident.
Important lawmakers in Park’s camp are defendants in the defamation suit.
If the prosecutors prove Park’s supporters have defamed Lee, they will have to take responsibility for that.
Voters will have to wait for the truth that the prosecutors will expose.