The public security investigations section at the Seoul District Prosecutor's Office has been allotted the so-called "X-File" case that involves the National Security Planning Agency's eavesdropping tape. Looking at the prosecution, however, it looks too hesitant to be able to say it has commenced on a full-scale investigation. Reportedly there is a lot of skepticism among prosecutors, with some saying an investigation would not have practical value since the statute of limitations has expired on most of the potential offenses, and the eavesdropping tape cannot be used as evidence. Supreme Public Prosecutor General Kim Jong Bin says that while the statute of limitations on the illegal eavesdropping have expired, the clocking is still ticking on the act of going public with it. You worry that the emphasis of the investigation could move away from the essential issues of the illegal eavesdropping, Samsung's giving of illegal campaign contributions, and the suspicions about how Samsung acquired Kia Motors, and instead be more about the publicizing the contents of the tape and the alleged illegality of how the media reported it.
The case is a powder keg, one in which the head of the country's largest jaebeol, the head of a major daily newspaper, and even former presidents could end up being investigated. As justice minister Chun Jung Bae put so well, the case is a meeting of what defines the way things used to be done and colossal government power, a combination of the old and diseased structures and culture of the past. The problem is that prosecutors have become feeble when handling cases that involve government powers that be, and you already see signs of that happening this time. The fact that the case has been given to the Seoul prosecution's public security investigations section makes you doubt the determination.
You understand the prosecution's predicament. It is true that there are various complications, such as the question of the legality of an investigation based on a recording on which the statute of limitations has expired. The need to relieve the people's suspicions as well as the historic demand for an eradication of the abuse of power and illegal acts by state agencies and the collusive triangular relationship between politics, business, and the media demands that prosecutors overcome the practical constraints. The whole country is watching everything the prosecution does.
The Hankyoreh, 27 July 2005.
[Translations by Seoul Selection (PMS)]
[Editorial] Wondering About the Prosecution's Determination |
