The ruling party, the government and the presidential office have reopened talks on staffing and organizational plans for two new law enforcement bodies just 19 days before their launch, after criticism mounted that the government's proposal to keep prosecutor quotas unchanged amounted to a retreat from prosecution reform. President Lee Jae-myung ordered revisions to the plan. While the move is aimed at easing discontent within the ruling bloc over the reform drive, critics say preparations for the overhaul have been poorly managed.
Kim Min-seok, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, signaled changes to the government's organizational plan for the new Public Prosecution Service in opening remarks at a high-level party-government meeting held at the prime minister's official residence in Seoul on the 13th. Points of contention include maintaining current prosecutor quotas and creating a judicial oversight division. "We will work out measures while taking full responsibility for the launch of the Public Prosecution Service and for police reform, so that there is no backsliding on prosecution reform and no gap in public safety," Kim said. Prime Minister Han Sung-sook said the government would "identify and address in advance any gaps or confusion that could arise in the field." Presidential Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik added that the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency and the Public Prosecution Service, both set to launch on Oct. 2, are "an important product of institutionalizing the prosecution reform principle of separating investigation from indictment." He asked officials to "thoroughly review staffing, systems and all related matters so that they can carry out their core functions without disruption from day one."
The talks were reopened because of strong objections within the ruling bloc to the government's plan to keep prosecutor numbers at current levels and to establish a judicial oversight division. Hard-line lawmakers in the ruling bloc argued that "leaving the existing prosecution service's organization and powers effectively intact is a retreat from prosecution reform." After Lee ordered revisions, the party, government and presidential office convened the high-level meeting on short notice and began reworking the plan.
Participants also shared a sense of urgency over the president's approval rating, which has fallen below 40% as the dispute over the reorganization accelerated defections among supporters. "This is a transitional period for the administration, with approval ratings adjusting and a cabinet reshuffle underway," Kim said. Han said the meeting was being held again less than a month after the last one "because this is an important turning point for people's livelihoods and state affairs." She added: "The more severe the public's judgment, the more clearly we must do what needs to be done, without hesitation, and the faster we must make necessary improvements."
The three sides also agreed to accelerate reform of the police, whose powers expand with the launch of the Public Prosecution Service. They said they would pursue legal revisions to ease restrictions on tracking the location of missing adults, prompted by a recent case on Jeju Island in which a missing-person report was falsely closed.
"The president has consistently stressed a government that saves lives, and he recently instructed that missing-person cases be included in the government's life-and-safety management framework, alongside suicides and industrial accidents," Kang said. "We will work together to draw up sweeping improvements to the system for handling missing-person cases and push them through quickly, so that the concerns and anxieties of the public, including families of the missing, can be dispelled." He added: "Beyond the misconduct of the individual officer in charge, this exposed a range of long-standing police problems at once, including poor case management and the practice of closing cases after non-face-to-face checks. There is also a case for revising the law to allow faster searches for missing adults."
The meeting also reviewed measures to stabilize prices ahead of Chuseok, the autumn harvest holiday. "We are mobilizing all available resources to inject 193 billion won, adding 90 billion won to the program to stabilize prices of holiday goods," Kang said, asking the relevant ministries to work with retailers and closely monitor implementation. Authorities will also step up efforts to curb price gouging at major tourist destinations during the holiday. Han said the government would "look after people's livelihoods so that at least during the holiday they can be free of worry," adding that it would "manage prices stably and prepare thoroughly so that people face no inconvenience in transport, medical care and safety."
The government said earlier that it would spend a total of 193 billion won on discounts for agricultural, livestock and fisheries products, adding 90 billion won in available funds to the 103 billion won originally budgeted. It will extend the discount period for farm and livestock products by one week and scrap the per-person discount cap. Supplies of 19 key holiday items will reach a record 183,000 tons, 1.6 times the normal level. A record 43.4 trillion won in holiday funding will be provided to small business owners and small and medium-sized enterprises. At traditional markets, about 30% of spending on domestic agricultural, livestock and fisheries products will be refunded in Onnuri gift certificates.
