The Democratic Party and allied lawmakers on the 1st unilaterally tabled two bills at the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee that would allow prosecutors to demand supplementary or renewed investigations by the Major Crimes Investigation Agency, which handles seven categories of crime. People Power Party lawmakers walked out of the meeting in protest, saying the bills had appeared without prior notice on the agenda, and the Democratic Party referred the legislation to a subcommittee after approving the tabling.
Kim Young-jin of the Democratic Party, who chairs the committee, said just before the session closed that he intended to add to the agenda the tabling of two amendments to the law on the organization and operation of the Major Crimes Investigation Agency.
The bills would let prosecutors demand supplementary or renewed investigations from the agency or its regional offices in seven categories of crime: sexual violence, sex crimes against children and adolescents, stalking, child abuse, abuse of people with disabilities, elder abuse and domestic violence.
The People Power Party objected immediately to the addition. Rep. Kang Myung-koo, the opposition's committee secretary, said the ruling side had rushed in with an amendment to the agency's law at a time when the police were in complete disarray. The prosecutors' authority to demand supplementary investigations existed to examine flawed probes, Kang said, adding that the bill would not have been necessary had that authority been left intact. The ruling party, Kang said, was effectively admitting it could not entrust the correction of flawed investigations to the police again.
Rep. Seo Myung-ok of the People Power Party also criticized the move, saying the ruling side had abolished prosecutors' supplementary investigation authority outright and was now trying to fill the resulting gap with individual statutes and exception clauses. It amounted to nothing more than a stopgap remedy, Seo said, patching the side effects of hasty legislation with more legislation.
The Democratic Party argues the schedule for the agency's launch leaves no room for further delay. Rep. Lee Hae-sik said floor leaders from both parties had agreed on plenary sessions for the 3rd and the 17th, and that the Chuseok holiday afterward had left no room to set an agenda. The tabling was unavoidable in order to put the agency's laws and systems in order by October 2, Lee said.
Rep. Lee Sang-sik of the Democratic Party also called the bill urgent, noting that the agency must open its doors on October 2. Legal gaps can arise in the process of redesigning all at once a criminal justice system that has gone nearly 80 years without change, Lee said, adding that submitting the amendment was appropriate in order to protect citizens' rights more robustly.
When the tabling was put to a vote, People Power Party lawmakers protested and left the room. The amendments, tabled at the Democratic Party's initiative, were referred to the committee's legislative review subcommittee.
The committee handled other bills the same day without disagreement between the parties.
Chief among them was an amendment to the special act on the October 29 Itaewon disaster, extending by one year the term of the special investigation commission established to determine the cause of the crowd crush and prevent a recurrence. If the amendment clears the plenary session, the commission will operate until September 16, 2027.
Also passed at the full committee meeting were an amendment to the Local Autonomy Act introducing a public compact system that clarifies roles and financial burden-sharing when the central and local governments jointly handle affairs, an amendment to the Framework Act on Fire Services designating wildfire response as an activity specific to fire authorities, and amendments to the State Public Officials Act and the Local Public Officials Act extending the statute of limitations for disciplinary action against public officials for stalking and distribution of obscene material to 10 years from three.
