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| Protesters hold up national flags and yellow balloons at a rally calling for prosecutorial reform next to Yeouido Park, Seoul, Saturday. / Yonhap |
Conservatives stage opposing demonstrations
By Lee Suh-yoon
People calling for prosecutorial reform blanketed roads next to Yeouido Park in Seoul, Saturday, days after the prosecutors' office arrested the wife of controversial former Justice Minister Cho Kuk over various corruption allegations.
This rally, the 11th of its kind, was held even after the short-lived former minister announced a set of reform measures to limit prosecutors' powers to investigate and indict and the Cabinet approved the plan.
The first nine rallies took place on the doorsteps of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office in southern Seoul. Since last weekend, the crowds have moved in front of the National Assembly in Yeouido, calling on lawmakers to pass the relevant reform bills.
Protesters chanted slogans like "Let's complete prosecutorial reform" and "the National Assembly should respond." One of their key demands was the creation of a separate investigative body for cases involving high-ranking public officials ― the contested centerpiece of the proposed reform. According to the ruling party bill, this body would have the authority to exclusively probe wrongdoings by high-ranking public officials, blocking the prosecutor's office from direct involvement in high-profile cases that have previously subjected the agency to criticisms of political meddling.
"The prosecution has degenerated into a political, partial agency that is used to shield certain political groups," Ahn Jin-gul, director of the People's Livelihood Economy Research Institute, told the crowd during the rally. "It's essential for the people to set the prosecution right and set up this special investigative body."
According to a Realmeter poll earlier this month, 51.4 percent of Koreans said they were in favor of the new investigative body for probing corrupt public officials, compared to 41.2 percent who opposed the plan.
Protesters marched to the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP) headquarters following the main rally, calling on the party to stop blocking the reform bills. Some demanded the prosecution investigate LKP chairman Rep. Hwang Kyo-ahn over recent allegations he was involved in the martial law plans drafted in 2017 against participants of massive candlelit protests held over a corruption scandal involving then President Park Geun-hye.
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| People from conservative civic groups protest the government's plans to set up a special body investigating corruption in high-ranking public officials and call for President Moon Jae-in's impeachment, during a demonstration next to the National Assembly, Seoul, Saturday. / Yonhap |
Conservative groups have also been staging demonstrations against the prosecutorial reform since Cho was nominated as justice minister. They are continuing the protests after Cho's resignation, demanding the government scrap the reform plan and Cho be arrested over corruption allegations involving his family.
Several conservative groups also rallied on the same day on Yeouido and in Gwanghwamun Square. As in previous rallies, the protesters ― some still loyal to the impeached former President Park ― also called for President Moon Jae-in to step down.
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