President Lee Jae-myung on the 18th directly rebutted claims that his administration is backtracking on prosecution reform and appealed for restraint over infighting and derogatory language among his own supporters. The remarks are seen as an effort to reassure his base by reaffirming his commitment to reform, at a time when discontent has been growing within the ruling bloc's support base over recent appointments and the direction of prosecution reform.
Speaking at a news conference at the Yeongbingwan guest house of the former presidential compound, Lee said, "I ask once again that you set aside suspicions that the president is effectively trying not to reform the prosecution, that he is trying to do something on the prosecution's side, that he is retreating from reform." He went on to stress that prosecution reform had in fact advanced beyond its original goals, saying, "Prosecution reform is already settled." The comments made clear he will not reverse the existing reform course of stripping prosecutors of investigative powers and separating a public prosecution office from a serious crimes investigation agency.
On concerns about an investigative gap created by abolishing prosecutors' supplementary investigative powers, Lee offered checks on the police as an alternative. "Problems that could arise from the absence of prosecutors' supplementary investigative powers will be resolved through thorough mechanisms to check and complement police investigations," he said. "Through high-intensity police reform, we will dispel public concerns that the police could regress into an all-powerful agency by monopolizing investigative powers."
Lee devoted considerable time to the derogatory and hateful language spreading within his support base. "I wish no one would use slurs against, or feel hatred or loathing toward, anyone," he said. "It pains me deeply every time I see it." He added, "However large the differences among us, they are not as wide as the distance between us and the opponents we must defeat," and urged, "Even if there are things that anger you, I hope we can embrace one another and find a way forward together toward the direction and values we originally held."
Lee was particularly pointed in warning against division among his supporters, saying, "We are all pro-Moon, pro-Roh, pro-Kim Dae-jung and comrades of Lee Jae-myung." Throughout the news conference he stressed the message that disagreements over the pace and methods of reform must not spill over into distrust of the government's commitment to reform itself or into conflict within his support base.
