Lee enacts three special probes into martial law, first lady, Marine's death as first legislative act

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Lee enacts three special probes into martial law, first lady, Marine's death as first legislative act

President Lee Jae-myung speaks at the Cabinet meeting at the presidential office in Yongsan, central Seoul, on June 10. [PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE]

President Lee Jae-myung speaks at the Cabinet meeting at the presidential office in Yongsan, central Seoul, on June 10. [PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE]

 
President Lee Jae-myung on Tuesday enacted three special probes into former President Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law "insurrection," the former first lady Kim Keon Hee and the death of a Marine soldier who drowned during the Yoon administration, signaling a hardline investigative drive that targets Yoon and his allies just one week after taking office.
 
The enactment, which came only a day after the bills were sent from the National Assembly, marks President Lee’s first formal legislative action. With a total of 120 prosecutors to be mobilized this fall, the concurrent launch of the large-scale investigations is expected to mount heavy legal pressure on Yoon, his wife and members of the opposition.
 

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“Public demand for constitutional restoration and the revival of democracy has been embedded in the passage and promulgation of these special counsel laws,” President Lee said during a Cabinet meeting held at the presidential office in Yongsan. He expressed hope that the special counsel investigations would bring complete clarity and transparency to the truth.
 
President Lee consistently pledged to investigate the events of Dec. 3, 2024 — the day Yoon declared martial law last year — during his presidential campaign. In his inaugural address on June 4, he declared it was “time to restore the democracy that was crushed by armored vehicles and automatic rifles” and promised “a full investigation, appropriate accountability and firm prevention measures.”
 
The Democratic Party (DP) fast-tracked the bills through the National Assembly on June 5, brushing off strong objections from the conservative People Power Party (PPP), to which Yoon previously belonged.
 
Defending the legislation, presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said during a briefing, “This is in response to the public’s demand for justice, confirmed during the June 3 election,” adding, “It also restores legislative power to the public, which had previously been obstructed by repeated vetoes.”
 
The National Assembly passes three special probes into former President Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law "insurrection," the former first lady Kim Keon Hee and the death of a Marine soldier who drowned during the Yoon administration on June 5 in western Seoul. [NEWS1]

The National Assembly passes three special probes into former President Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law "insurrection," the former first lady Kim Keon Hee and the death of a Marine soldier who drowned during the Yoon administration on June 5 in western Seoul. [NEWS1]

 
The special counsel campaign is unprecedented in both scale and simultaneity. While Korea has previously run two concurrent special investigations, this marks the first time three will operate simultaneously. The prosecutorial manpower alone will number 120 — six times that of the 2016 special counsel on the Choi Soon-sil influence-peddling scandal under the former Park Geun-hye administration — and roughly equal to more than half of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, the largest in the country. The total number of investigators will exceed 570.
 
The three laws explicitly target Yoon, his wife Kim and current opposition lawmakers. The Kim Keon-hee special counsel, staffed with 40 prosecutors, will examine 16 allegations, including her alleged involvement in political candidate nominations, the Deutsche Motors stock manipulation case and influence-peddling through a man named Jeon Seong-bae, also known as the shaman "Geonjin."
 
The martial law probe, with 60 prosecutors, will investigate 11 allegations tied to the Dec. 3 incident, including the mobilization of the military and police to block the National Assembly and arrest lawmakers. It will particularly probe claims that opposition lawmakers, such as then-floor leader Choo Kyung-ho of the PPP, tried to obstruct the Assembly’s vote to repeal the martial law decree.
 
“I believe someone in the PPP cooperated with the declaration of martial law," Lee said during his election campaign. "If they aided a coup and blocked its repeal, they must be thoroughly investigated and severely punished.”
 
Democratic Party lawmakers submit a bill for three special probes into former President Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law "insurrection," the former first lady Kim Keon Hee and the death of a Marine soldier who drowned during the Yoon administration on April 25 at the National Assembly in western Seoul. [JOONGANG ILBO]

Democratic Party lawmakers submit a bill for three special probes into former President Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law "insurrection," the former first lady Kim Keon Hee and the death of a Marine soldier who drowned during the Yoon administration on April 25 at the National Assembly in western Seoul. [JOONGANG ILBO]

 
The probe into the death of the Marine centers on allegations that former President Yoon interfered in an investigation into the death of a Marine during a flood rescue operation that took place in 2023.
 
Under the Yoon administration, each of the three laws was vetoed multiple times — four times for the Kim Keon-hee bill, twice for the martial law bill and three times for the Marine bill — on constitutional grounds. Spokesperson Kang said President Lee decided after “comprehensively reviewing the opinions of his Cabinet,” though acting Prime Minister Lee Ju-ho reportedly opposed the move and asked to delay the bills to the next Cabinet session.
 
Some legal experts have expressed concern about the scope and potential overreach of the investigations. Given that incidental findings during investigations can also become new cases, critics warn of an expansive “dragnet” approach. The fact that special prosecutors can hold press briefings has also raised alarms over possible political weaponization of the probes. Notably, the PPP has been excluded from the nomination process for special prosecutors — a right reserved for the DP and the Rebuilding Korea Party, which may also stir controversy.
 
The DP has already begun the nomination process. Special prosecutors must be appointed within 11 days for the martial law and Kim Keon-hee investigations, and within 12 days for the Marine case. Once the transition teams are in place, the probes could begin as early as next month.
 
President Lee Jae-myung attends the Cabinet meeting at the presidential office in Yongsan, central Seoul, on June 10. [PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE]

President Lee Jae-myung attends the Cabinet meeting at the presidential office in Yongsan, central Seoul, on June 10. [PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE]

 
Park Chan-dae, acting DP leader and floor leader, said at the National Assembly on Tuesday, “Through these three special investigations, we will restore normalcy in the Republic of Korea,” adding that they would “recommend candidates as soon as possible to ensure each probe launches without delay.”
 
The PPP denounced the move as political retaliation. Party spokesperson Park Soo-min said, “The president could have simply directed the prosecution himself, but instead unilaterally initiated this without any consultation with the opposition — this will only deepen political strife,” adding, “A president mired in partisan conflict will not succeed.”
 
Meanwhile, the Cabinet also approved revisions to the Prosecutors’ Disciplinary Act, allowing the justice minister — appointed by the president — to directly request disciplinary hearings for prosecutors. It also passed a presidential decree restructuring the National Planning Advisory Committee and abolishing the Personnel Information Management Division under the Ministry of Justice.


Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY KIM GYU-TAE [[email protected]]
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