Prosecutor general resigns in protest of plan for new investigative agency

Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl announces his resignation Thursday in front of the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office in Seoul. (Yonhap News)

Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl resigned Thursday protesting the ruling Democratic Party’s push to create a new investigative agency that would weaken the prosecution’s power.

“I am stepping down as the prosecutor general today,” Yoon told reporters at 2 pm Thursday in a press conference in front of the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office in Seoul. “My role in the prosecution ends here.”

Yoon’s resignation comes after his visit Wednesday to the Daegu High Prosecutors’ Office and District Prosecutors’ Office, where he said the agency’s creation would “lead to rampant corruption and fly in the face of the spirit of the Constitution,” criticizing the ruling Democratic Party.

Yoon, whose two-year term was set to end in July, said, “The spirit of the constitution and rule of law, which are the backbone of this country, are being destroyed. The people will suffer as a consequence.” Yoon took the afternoon off Thursday to write his statement.

He didn’t mention whether he intends to enter politics. But he hinted at the possibility, saying, “I will do my best to protect liberal democracy and the people as I always have, no matter where I am.”

Sources close to Yoon said he has been sharing his intention to step down as prosecutor general with his close colleagues. According to the sources, Yoon said, “There is nothing I can do in the prosecution.” Another source close to Yoon said, “[Yoon] was determined to stand his ground even when he faced disciplinary proceedings against him, but the recent push for an agency to investigate serious crimes has changed his mind.”

Yoon said Tuesday in an interview he would “put [his] job on the line 100 times to stop [the agency’s creation].”

By Bae Ji-hyun, staff reporter

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