Bill for second special counsel probes into Yoon, wife passes Assembly
The National Assembly on Friday passed a bill to launch additional special counsel probes into former President Yoon Suk Yeol over his Dec. 3, 2024, martial law declaration, as well as into his wife, Kim Keon Hee, reopening investigations that concluded in late December after monthslong probes.
The bill was approved after the Assembly, led by the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, voted to end filibusters launched by opposition lawmakers the previous day.
Of the 296 lawmakers, 174 were present, with 172 voting in favor and two against. The main opposition People Power Party boycotted the vote, with its leader Rep. Jang Dong-hyeok continuing to stage a hunger strike that began a day earlier.
The second special counsel bill calls for additional investigations into issues the ruling bloc said were not sufficiently examined under the earlier three special counsel probes.
In addition to insurrection charges related to Yoon's martial law declaration, the scope of the probe includes suspected foreign collusion and what the bill describes as acts amounting to a "military rebellion." Investigators will also examine allegations that state institutions or local governments supported the declaration of martial law or carried out follow-up measures to sustain it.
The special counsel will further examine allegations that Yoon and Kim Keon Hee, along with figures including self-proclaimed power broker Myung Tae-kyun and shaman Jeon Sung-bae, interfered in elections by facilitating illegal or manipulated opinion polls or improperly influencing the nomination process within the People Power Party during the 2022 local elections and by-elections as well as the 2024 general elections.
Also subject to investigation are suspicions that Kim improperly intervened in state matters, including the relocation of the presidential office and residence, and exerted influence over local development projects, including the rerouting of a highway project and the designation of a national high-tech industrial complex in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province.
The bill also covers allegations that Yoon interfered in investigations into the death of a Marine corporal during a flood rescue operation in July 2023.
Under the bill, the special counsel investigation may run for up to 170 days and deploy as many as 251 personnel, allowing the probe to continue beyond the June local elections.
Conservative opposition parties strongly criticized the move.
In a press statement later Friday, Rep. Kwak Kyu-taek, senior spokesperson for the People Power Party, accused the ruling Democratic Party of politicizing the special counsel system.
"The Democratic Party's attitude of using special counsel investigations — not as a tool for justice, but as a means to escape political crises — no longer comes as a surprise," Kwak said.
He argued that the ruling party was pursuing repetitive investigations after failing to obtain politically favorable results from the initial probes.
Rep. Chun Ha-ram, floor leader of the minor Reform Party, also called for the withdrawal of the second special counsel bill and urged separate special counsel probes into alleged political lobbying by the Unification Church involving a ruling party lawmaker.
Chun made the remarks during a luncheon earlier in the day hosted by President Lee Jae Myung that was attended by leaders from all major parties except the People Power Party.
The sharp standoff reflects the political stakes surrounding the upcoming local elections. For the People Power Party, a prolonged investigation into figures from the previous administration risks becoming a sustained political liability during the campaign. For the Democratic Party, accepting special counsel probes into allegations involving its ties to the Unification Church and nomination-related corruption could expose key figures to damaging scrutiny.
"If the Democratic Party truly speaks of justice," Kwak added, "it should accept the most urgent special counsel investigations first, instead of using additional special counsel probes. It must clearly state its position on the Unification Church and nomination donation investigations."
Meanwhile, Rep. Bak Seung-a, floor spokesperson for the Democratic Party, defended the passage of the bill, calling it "a responsible decision by the National Assembly in response to the public's stern demand to restore the collapsed constitutional order and normalize state affairs."
She added that the ruling party would "fulfill the public's demand and its timely responsibility by passing a comprehensive special counsel bill aimed at addressing the insurrection and restoring constitutional order."
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