South Korea prosecution reform may concentrate power

Significance

President Moon Jae-in has fulfilled his manifesto pledge to reform the country’s powerful prosecution service, with sweeping legislation that transfers most of its investigative remit to two new bodies that will handle minor crimes and elite suspects, respectively. Ruling party lawmakers now seek to remove the last remaining investigative powers of the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office (SPO) by creating a new serious crimes agency.

Impacts

• Reassigning prosecutors away from cases investigating the ruling camp invites suspicion.
• A proliferation of new bodies may create coordination problems and turf wars.
• Finding a new prosecutor-general who is credible but more pliant will be challenging for Moon.
• Yoon is a likely contender for the conservative opposition in next year’s presidential election.